PBA: Ginebra cements place in quarters

Barangay Ginebra cemented its place in the quarterfinals of the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup with a 122-104 shellacking of Burger King Sunday night at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Kings ripped the game apart with a big run in the second half to clinch win no. 12 at the close of their 18-game schedule in the two-round elimination. With a 12-6 card, the Kings will now have to wait if second-running Alaska (12-4) could win at least one of its final two assignments to have a shot at the remaining outright semifinals berth. The league’s popular ballclub automatically gains a playoff berth in the event the Aces lose both games. “We’ll just have to wait right now. We’ll have a one-day break on Monday and then resume practice on Tuesday for us to keep in shape," said JC Intal, who was again the Kings’ source of offense against the Whopper. The former Ateneo stalwart scored a career-high 24 points as he presided over the Kings’ telling breakaway in the third period. During that stretch, the Kings scored a whopping 35 points to the Whopper’s 19, allowing them to carry a 92-74 lead entering the fourth quarter. Burger King was never able to threaten from there as it absorbed its 12th loss as against five wins. But the Whopper are already assured of reaching the playoffs following Sta. Lucia’s 108-86 rout of Barako Bull earlier. Two free throws by Intal following the ejection of Burger King rookie Ronnie Mathias gave the Kings their biggest lead of the game, 110-83, with seven minutes left. - GMANews.TV