Meralco, Ginebra firm up quarters bid for PBA Commissioner’s Cup

The Meralco Bolts dimmed the lights out of Blackwater Bossing with a 108–93 triumph as they inched closer to the quarterfinals.

Flaunting a 7–3 sheet, Meralco is now a prime candidate for a top-four finish, while the Blackwater Bossing fell to a 2–9 card, leaving their quarterfinals bid officially extinguished.

Marvin Jones anchored the Bolts with a double-double built on 26 markers and 12 rebounds, while Chris Banchero and CJ Cansino conspired for 26 points to bolster Meralco’s offense.

Armed with a 10-point cushion by the second half, Jones and company slashed through Blackwater’s abysmal inside defense as they tallied 16 baskets from layups alone to notch an 87-67 lead entering the fourth quarter.

Meralco held the lead in double digits thanks to Aaron Black’s layup and three-pointer, 98-72, backstopped by Jefferson Comia’s twin free throws to seal the deal.

Meanwhile, the loss overshadowed Robert Upshaw III’s impressive 31-point performance, as Sedrick Barefield and Paul Zamar’s contributions of 16 and 11 points, respectively, were not enough to save Blackwater from defeat.

With two final games under its belt, Meralco looks to maintain its winning form against Terrafirma and Magnolia, all on May 8, to secure a spot in the final eight.

Waxed hot

On the other hand, Ginebra caught fire from downtown as they buried 21 threes in a 114–90 demolition of the Rain-or-Shine Elasto Painters.

Coming off a stinging loss to Meralco last Friday, the Gin Kings vented their ire from deep down in the second half, pulling away from the Painters to break bread for second place at 8–3.

Ginebra’s cornerstone Justin Brownlee posted 40 points, while RJ Abarrientos assumed an all-rounder role of 23 markers and 11 assists to tow Ginebra to victory.

After a nip-and-tuck affair in the first half, 43-42, Louis Cu’s treys opened the floodgates as nine more triples followed in the third quarter alone to steal a 16-point lead, 86-70.

From there, Brownlee flexed his championship muscles as he drained back-to-back threes with less than two minutes left, 109-86, capped off by Jeth Rosario’s layup to ice the score.

Rain-or-Shine import Jaylen Johnson pulled in a balanced effort of 16 points, as well as Gian Mamamuyac’s 14 markers, but it wasn’t enough to overcome their foes’ hot shooting. 

Ginebra now sets its eyes on Terrafirma Dyip on May 6, where they will look to maintain a tight grip on their second-place standing.

With reports from PBA.ph