King lifts Blackwater past Ginebra to end slump

Blackwater arrested a three-game skid and barged into the win column after a morale-boosting upset over Barangay Ginebra San Miguel, 95-88, behind the stellar debut of replacement import George King in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Governors’ Cup Friday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

King’s arrival turned the Bossing into a different team altogether for a taste of victory in Group B.

After a seesaw match in the first two quarters, Blackwater took total control of the game after outscoring the Gin Kings, 31-20, in the third period.

The Bossing maintained their safe distance with Sedrick Barefield burying a dagger four-pointer in the last 35 seconds to seal the franchise’s first win over Ginebra since 24 May 2019, ending a nine-game head-to-head futility.

“(The win) it’s really huge. I think, more than just the history and (ending) the slump we’ve been on for the last five years, it’s really just about staying in the conference. That’s our goal,” Blackwater coach Jeff Cariaso said.

“We knew our backs were against the wall having given up three games already. We felt that going into this game there’s still time but the pressure was really on us to get the ball rolling.”

King made a stunning introduction with 33 points off a 12-of-23 field goal shooting and grabbed 19 rebounds on top of four assists as a replacement for underperforming Ricky Ledo.     

“George came in at a perfect time and gave us that big lift,” said Cariaso, whose squad played with an all-Filipino lineup in a 20-point crushing at the hands of San Miguel Beer last Sunday.

Barefield, the no. 2 overall pick in the last Draft, had 13 points, Christian David added 11 while Troy Rosario scored 10 for the Bossing.

Ginebra dropped its second game in three outings.

Justin Brownlee dropped 37 points with six rebounds and five assists while Japeth Aguilar had 17 markers and 11 boards for the Gin Kings.

RJ Abarrientos made 10 points, Maverick Ahanmisi got nine while Rookie of the Year Stephen Holt was limited to five.

Box scores:

BLACKWATER (95) –-- King 33, Barefield 13, David 11, Rosario 10, Guinto 9, Kwekuteye 8, Ilagan 5, Chua 4, Escoto 2, Casio 0, Mitchell 0, Ponferrada 0

GINEBRA (88) --- Brownlee 37, Aguilar 17, Abarrientos 10, Ahanmisi 9, Holt 5, Thompson 4, Go 4, Adamos 2, Cu 0, Garcia 0

Quarters: 20-21, 46-44, 77-64, 95-88