MAGNOLIA Ang Pambansang Manok made the plays that mattered in the endgame to hold off Barangay Ginebra 101-97 Monday and move within another win of wrapping up their PBA Governors Cup semifinal duel at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Much like in what he did in a 106-98 win in the best-of-five opener last Saturday, Romeo Travis once again played the starring role with 25 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists while Ian Sangalang, Paul Lee and Rome dela Rosa acted out the able supporting cast.
As a result, the Hotshots now have three cracks at sealing the deal, starting with Game 3 Wednesday also at the Big Dome.
Coach Chito Victolero said the most important thing right now is for his squad not to get too far ahead of itself, get refreshed and be mentally prepared for what is expected to be another grind-out affair.
"Again, winning two games is nothing, we have to win three games," said Victolero. "Just prepare one game at a time. Sana, proper mindset pa rin pag-prepare namin para sa Game 3."
Sponsored content:
Unlike in the opener and just as Victolero expected, Ginebra stayed close until the stretch this time despite coach Tim Cone's ejection for incurring two technical fouls for vehemently protesting a non-call, still 9:18 left.
With Justin Brownlee leading the way, the Kings came furiously charging back, its uprising capped by a triple each from Sol Mercado and LA Tenorio that made it a 97-99 count, still 24 ticks to go.
Lee's charity split left the door open for Ginebra to tie, but Tenorio and Brownlee missed their respective tries from deep.
That was when Travis shone the most. Although he missed two freebies awarded him, Travis managed to get hold of the ball off a tap by Rafi Reavis and practically sealed the game with a free throw, only 1.8 seconds left.
Victolero said his team was already braced for overtime. "We prepared for this game for 53 minutes he said, referring to the possibility of an extension.
Sponsored content:
"We tried to prepare mentally because we knew Ginebra will bounce back hard," added Victolero. "Yung mga breaks ng game napunta sa amin iyung iba. Depensa naming nag-hold up din sa huli. Give credit to all the players. Even if they are tired, they kept on pressuring, defending."
Despite being constantly harassed by the defense anchored on Dela Rosa, Brownlee still wound up with a gamehigh 31 points on top of 12 rebounds and seven dimes.
Tenorio and Japeth Aguilar each chipped in 15 points while Greg Slaughter added 14 points.
Sangalang backstopped Travis with 17 points with Lee adding 14 and Dela Rosa finding time to contribute 11 points.
The scores:
Magnolia 101 - Travis 25, Sangalang 17, Lee 14, Dela Rosa 11, Barroca 9, Jalalon 8, Reavis 6, Melton 5, Simon 5, Herndon 1.
Ginebra 97 - Brownlee 31, Tenorio 15, Aguilar 15, Slaughter 14, Thompson 7, Mercado 7, Mariano 4, Chan 2, Caguioa 2, Ferrer 0.
Quarters: 21-18, 47-46, 75-68, 101-97
