Joshua Munzon and NorthPort spoiled the debut of top overall pick Justin Baltazar for Converge via a 108-101 victory in the Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner’s Cup on Thursday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
Munzon caught fire, torching the FiberXers from the outside before delivering the crucial blows down the stretch to secure their fifth straight win in this midseason conference.
Munzon, the top overall pick four years ago, fired 30 points, including the back-to-back three-pointers that shattered their 97-all deadlock and sent them to their finest start since joining the league in 2012.
He also posted three rebounds and three steals to round out his impressive overall performance that came a day after emerging as the league’s best player of the week with averages of 22.5 points on a 44-percent shooting clip from three-point territory, 6.0 rebounds, 4.5 steals, and 2.5 assists.
Import Kadeem Jack led NorthPort with 32 points and 15 rebounds, while Arvin Tolentino finished with a 21-point, 13-rebound double-double to offset his seven turnovers.
Baltazar, meanwhile, had a forgettable debut with five points, four boards, and three assists.
“More than anything, we’re happy to be 5-0 right now,” said Munzon, branding Converge as a “great team” after pushing them to the limit before bowing in the final stretch.
“They put the pressure on us defense, in transition they were on us pretty much the whole game. It’s a back-and-forth game, that’s a tough team. But at the end of the game, we ended up making more shots.”
With Jordan Heading hitting his shots, NorthPort had a hard time pulling away.
Alec Stockton’s triple knotted the count at 97, but Munzon nailed back-to-back three-pointers for a 103-97 lead for NorthPort in the final 1:45 mark.
Heading nailed his charities to put Converge closer, 103-99, but Jack knocked down a three-pointer to give NorthPort a comfortable cushion, 106-99, with 1:22 left en route to the impressive win.