PBA: Barangay Ginebra bench fuels late surge in semis Game 1 win vs. San Miguel

Barangay Ginebra rode a late burst from its bench to hack out a 99-90 victory against defending champion San Miguel in Game 1 of PBA Philippine Cup semifinals on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

RJ Abarrientos, Ralph Cu, Norbert Torres, and Jayson David keyed the victory that allowed the Gin Kings to take the series opener and snap the Beermen's 10-game winning streak dating back to the elimination round.

Abarrientos came alive, scoring seven of their last 13 points to finish with a team-high 23 points together with four rebounds, seven assists, and two steals, while Cu and Torres fired huge triples in the fourth to tally 13 and eight markers apiece.

David, who suffered a dislocated shoulder in their knockout game against Converge in the quarterfinals, suited up and poured 10 points as veteran Scottie Thompson posted 22 points and five rebounds.

"We were very aware that they are the number one team in bench points so we challenge our guys to come out really play well against Don Trollano and Jericho Cruz and Juami Tiongson," Ginebra head coach Tim Cone said.

"We knew we had to come out and play and I thought they did a great job keeping the energy. We went down but it was the second group, Jayson and RJ, who brought us back."

Late third-quarter substitution Cu sparked the rally, closing out the penultimate period with a booming triple to help Ginebra cut the deficit to just one, 72-73.

He and Torres caught fire in the fourth, each burying two three-pointers before David made it an 86-81 cushion halfway through the payoff period.

Abarrientos then punished the Beermen after completing a three-point play and sinking a pair of free throws in the next sequence for a 91-85 lead.

His crafty pass set up a Troy Rosario layup, and he calmly sank two more free throws as Ginebra extended their lead to a comfortable 95-86 with 1:54 remaining, paving the way for the victory.

Ginebra’s second and third units outshone San Miguel’s reserves, combining for 54 points compared to just 29 from the Beermen’s bench as low production from Juami Tiongson, Don Trollano, and Jericho Cruz contributed to San Miguel’s woes.

Tiongson was only held to eight points while Trollano and Cruz were limited to five and four markers each. 

Scores:

Barangay Ginebra 99 – Abarrientos 23, Thompson 22, Cu 13, David 10, Torres 8, Rosario 8, J.Aguilar 7, Holt 6, Gray 2, Pinto 0, Estil 0.

San Miguel 90 – Fajardo 27, Perez 18, Lassiter 12, Tiongson 8, Trollano 5, Calma 4, Cruz 4, Cahilig 3, Tautuaa 3, Brondial 2, Rosales 2.

Quarters: 26-18, 48-46, 72-73, 99-90.

—JKC, GMA Integrated News