Resurgent Barangay Ginebra San Miguel scored a sweet payback over Rain or Shine, 124-102, for a share of the lead in Group B of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Governors’ Cup on Friday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Resident import Justine Brownlee led the Gin Kings’ charge as they avenged their stinging loss in their first meeting in Candon, Ilocos Sur to tie their victim and San Miguel Beer in a three-way logjam at the top spot with 5-2 win-loss cards.
Brownlee scattered 40 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, and added four assists and two steals in an all-around performance for Ginebra, who got their revenge after suffering a 73-64 loss in their first meeting last 24 August, where Brownlee was limited to just 18 points.
However, the Gin Kings paid a steep price for their fourth straight win after big man Isaac Go went down with an apparent ankle injury after just 79 seconds of action in the first quarter.
Go hurt his ankle while trying to close in on Felix Pangilinan-Lemetti from the three-point area and was whistled for a foul. He was carried back to the dugout with 3:31 left and never returned.
“The win is a little bittersweet because we don’t know where Isaac Go is at this point. We don’t know the severity of his injury,” Ginebra head coach Tim Cone said of the forward who went down with an ACL tear two years ago.
“That makes this one bittersweet. We kind of like won the battle but lost the war losing Isaac. He was a big part of what we’re trying to build.”
Japeth Aguilar finished with 21 points and eight boards, Stephen Holt had 18 points, all coming from the three-point area, while Scottie Thompson submitted 17 markers and eight assists for Ginebra.
The Gin Kings came out as a different team from the one that dropped their conference opener.
Rain or Shine took a 62-58 lead early in the third only to allow Ginebra to make a run, opening a double-digit lead entering the payoff period, 90-79.
Aaron Fuller led the Elasto Painters with 28 points and 11 rebounds, Jhonard Clarito added 16, while Lemetti and Adrian Nocum chipped in 15 and 12, respectively.
Box scores:
GINEBRA (124) --- Brownlee 40, J.Aguilar 21, Holt 18, Thompson 17, Abarrientos 14, Ahanmisi 13, Garcia 1, Pinto 0, R.Aguilar 0, Cu 0, Adamos 0, Pessumal 0, Go 0
RAIN OR SHINE (102) --- Fuller 28, Clarito 16, Lemetti 15, Nocum 12, Caracut 8, Santillan 6, Villegas 6, Tiongson 5, Mamuyac 4, Norwood 2, Datu
Quarters: 38-30 58-54, 90-79, 124-102