Barangay Ginebra clinches playoffs berth at expense of TNT

Barangay Ginebra San Miguel officially advanced to the next round of the 2022 PBA Commissioner’s Cup after beating the TNT Tropang Giga, 89-85, on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

The game was tied at 81 with 3:36 left in the fourth period before Ginebra made a 4-0 spurt to regain the lead. Poy Erram made a shot at the 50-second mark to cut their deficit before free throws from Justin Brownlee off a Calvin Oftana foul extended Ginebra's lead to four.

Another Oftana foul brought Brownlee to the line where he split his free throws to give them a five-point cushion. Brian Heruela made a shot to trim their deficit, but another split from Brownlee sealed the win for Ginebra.

Brownlee flirted with a triple-double as he tallied 21 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists to lead Ginebra in their fifth straight victory and improve their standings to 7-2.

TNT, who fielded an all-Filipino squad, was dealt their second straight loss, with Mikey Williams leading the scorers with 20 points, seven rebounds, and five assists.

Ginebra will play NLEX next on Friday, while TNT will try to bounce back against Bay Area on Wednesday.

The scores:

Ginebra 89 – Brownlee 21, Pringle 12, Thompson 10, J. Aguilar 9, Tenorio 8, Mariano 8, Malonzo 8, Standhardinger 8, Gray 5, Pinto 0.

TNT 85 – M.Williams 20, Pogoy 18, Erram 16,  Khobuntin 10, Castro 7, Oftana 6, K.Williams 4, Tungcab 2, Heruela 2, Ganuelas-Rosser 0, Soyud 0.

Quarters: 34-22, 53-45, 68-71, 89-85.

—JMB, GMA Integrated News