Magnolia completes comeback win over Meralco in battle of frontrunners

The guards came out for the Magnolia Pambansang Manok Hotshots as they bucked a slow start to knock down Meralco, 88-85, in the PBA Governors' Cup on Wednesday at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Bolts racked up its lead to as big as 16, 53-37, to open the third frame with import Tony Bishop and Chris Newsome leading the way.

However, they slowly witnessed their lead be trimmed down as the Hotshots mounted a comeback.

The backcourt duo of Paul Lee and Adrian Wong fueled a 21-9 run for their side, where they combined for 14 points, as Magnolia sliced the gap to just six markers, 58-62, with the Bolts still at the front.

Wong continued waxing from deep, notching eight of the Hotshots' 10 last points in the third frame as they regained their lead, 68-66. Magnolia then opened the fourth with a quick 7-2 run for a 77-68 cushion.

The Hotshots kept hold of their lead since then but Allein Maliksi's back-to-back triples kept Meralco within striking distance as Meralco inched by a thread, 85-86, with 42 ticks left.

After a quick basket by Magnolia import Mike Harris, 88-85, Maliksi was again given the chance to tie the ball game from the arc but he failed to drop the leather against Mark Barroca's defense.

Lee led the locals after collecting 16 points, four rebounds, three steals, and two assists while Harris had a monster performance with a double-double of 30 markers and 22 boards to go along with two blocks.

Wong and Barroca delivered with 10 points apiece with the latter adding five rebounds and five dimes as Magnolia improved to 8-1 for a secured twice-to-beat playoff bonus while Meralco dropped to 6-3.

The defeat handed Meralco back-to-back comeback loss as the Bolts were coming off a heartbreaking game against the Alaska Aces last Saturday.

The scores:

Magnolia 88 - Harris 30, Lee 16, Barroca 10, Wong 10, Jalalon 10, Reavis 6, Corpuz 4, Escoto 2, Brill 0, Ahanmisi 0, Dionisio 0.

Meralco 85 - Bishop 19, Newsome 18, Banchero 13, Maliksi 13, Almazan 6, Hodge 5, Caram 5 ,Black 4, Belo 2, Quinto 0.

Quarters: 11-23, 36-47, 68-66, 88-85.

– RC, GMA News