PBA: Monfort drops 22 as Barako blasts Bolts for first win of the conference

On the heels of another controversial trade, Barako Bull Energy Cola recovered and held on to a 90-89 win over the Meralco Bolts, Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, in the on-going 2013 PBA Governors' Cup.

Both teams now find themselves at 1-1 in the standings, after getting the reverse result of their tourney-openers. Barako Bull had lost to Talk 'N Text last Friday in overtime, while Meralco dispatched the Petron Blaze Boosters on the same night.

Emman Monfort was a revelation in the game with 22 points, seven rebounds, and two assists in 29 minutes. But more than the points, it was his heady point guard play that allowed Barako Bull to get the victory. Monfort scored 17 points in the second half to help Barako Bull climb back from an eight-point first half deficit.

“It was a very tough game for us. In the first half we didn’t play good because our point guards were not that good,” said Barako Bull consultant Rajko Toroman. “Our starting point guard Emman didn’t play a lot in the first half because of the three fouls.”

Barako import Mike Singletary had a good all-around game with 28 points, 14 rebounds, two assists, and three steals. This time, he paced himself correctly, which allowed him to have plenty of gas left in the tank for the game’s most crucial stretches.

Mario West had two chances to win the game for the Meralco Bolts but he missed on a pair of running one-handers to allow Barako Bull to get the victory.

“We were very weak inside in the first half and this is the reason why we put Dorian Peña in the game,” Toroman added. “The hero of this game is Dorian Peña. He made us tougher defensively. Even if he can’t score, he gave some good passes inside.”

Peña, who was acquired just prior to the start of the conference for Doug Kramer from the Petron Blaze Boosters, tallied seven rebounds, two assists, and a steal in 17 minutes of action. He failed to a score a single point as he refused to take any shot. He was open for put-back multiple times in the game but he passed up on these and instead chose to pass the ball.

Emman Monfort scored five early points for Barako Bull to give them a 7-2 lead at the 10:07 mark of the first. Two free throws from Mike Singletary and a triple by Ronjay Buenafe then stretched Barako's lead to 10 points at 12-2.

Meralco import Mario West then went to work by scoring two baskets and dishing out an assist to Cliff Hodge to get the Bolts to within a basket at 12-10. Later on, a corner triple from Josh Vanlandingham got the Bolts to within a point at 20-19. They had multiple chances to take the lead, but Barako managed to hold on to a 22-21 edge after the first quarter.

Reynel Hugnatan and West continued to carry the offense for Meralco in the second quarter. After a dunk and a triple from West, Hugnatan gave the Bolts their first taste of the lead at 30-29. West then added another triple to stretch their advantage to four points.

West slammed in an alley-oop pass from Chris Ross to bump Meralco's lead up to eight points at 41-33 at the 4:52 mark of the second, but Singletary completed an and-one play on the other side to keep Barako within striking distance.

A jumper from West gave Meralco a double-digit lead at 47-36, with only 1:54 remaining in the first half. However, Barako managed to trim it slightly, to trail 49-41 heading into the break.

Meralco’s import led all scorers with 22 points after two periods. Hugnatan added 10 points on an efficient 50 percent clip from the field. Singletary had 12 points for Barako Bull but he was the only one who had scored in double-digits for his team.


Monfort canned two triples early in the third quarter to trim Meralco's lead down to five points at 56-51. Another basket from Monfort and four points from Singletary then gave Barako Bull a 57-56 lead.

West retook the lead for the Bolts but Monfort connected on yet another triple, followed by two layups from Singletary, to give Barako Bull a 64-58 buffer with 3:25 left in the third.

Sunday Salvacion and John Wilson then sank three straight triples to swing the lead back to Meralco, 67-64 lead, 58 seconds left in the penultimate quarter. Danny Seigle however nailed a buzzer-beater to get Barako Bull within a point of the Bolts at 67-66, heading into the final frame.

A Seigle basket knotted the game at 72-all but Sunday Salvacion swished in back-to-back treys to give the Bolts a 78-72 lead. After a free throw from Wilson, Barako Bull unleashed a 12-0 blast to get an 84-79 lead with only 4:58 left in the ball game.

The Bolts ate into that lead to get to within a single point with a Ross basket at the 1:55 mark of the fourth, but Monfort padded his career-high scoring night with another jumper. A put-back from West got Meralco within a point at 90-89 with 41 seconds left in the game, but they couldn't quite complete the reversal.

West led Meralco with 33 points in the game. Hugnatan added 16 while Salvacion chipped in 12 points from four second-half triples. - RAF, GMA News


The scores:

Barako Bull 90: Singletary 28, Monfort 22, Seigle 12, Buenafe 7, Jensen 6, Pennisi 5, Intal 4, Marcelo 2, Macapagal 2, Cruz 2, Weinstein 0, Yap 0, Pena 0

Meralco 89: West 33, Hugnatan 16, Salvacion 12, Wilson 9, Hodge 4, Guevarra 4, Ross 4, Allado 4, Vanlandingham 3, Mangahas 0

Quarter scoring: 22-21, 41-48, 66-67, 90-89