PBA: Quinto, Maliksi fuel Meralco past Phoenix in 3OT; forces QF do-or-die

Bong Quinto and Allein Maliksi found their shooting touch in time as Meralco staved off elimination with a triple overtime win against twice-to-beat Phoenix Super LPG, 116-107, in their PBA Season 48 Commissioner's Cup quarterfinal tussle on Wednesday.

The win enabled the Bolts to force a sudden death match with the semifinals ticket at stake.

Four quarters were not enough for the Bolts as they needed three extra periods to fend off the Fuel Masters, who led by as many as 15 points in multiple points of the game before the Bolts restored order. 

Quinto fired a corner triple while Maliksi drained a jumper that allowed the Bolts to power a pivotal 10-0 run to open the third overtime, 113-103. Phoenix needed three minutes and 30 seconds to convert its first field goal courtesy of RJ Jazul, 105-113. 

It was the fired-up Quinto who issued the dagger triple en route to the hard-fought win. 

Heroes were aplenty for Meralco with Shonn Miller churning out a double-double of 18 points and 20 rebounds while Cliff Hodge finished with 20 markers and 10 boards despite sustaining an injury during the first overtime. 

After playing catch-up for most of the game, the Bolts gained some momentum in the fourth period as Aaron Black caught fire to rally his team. The former Ateneo standout sank a booming triple to cut their deficit to just five with 3:44 to go, 79-74.

Meralco then unleashed a strong 7-0 rampage capped by a huge three-point play opportunity completed by import Shonn Miller, 82-81.

But sophomore Tyler Tio was steady on his trip to the line after drawing a foul from Chris Newsome, shooting two freebies to make it an 84-81 cushion with 8.9 ticks to spare. 

Newsome, though, made up for it after nailing the game-tying three-pointer to force overtime. Newsome also came up big in the first two overtimes which allowed Meralco to keep Phoenix at bay.

Phoenix import Johnathan Williams hammered out a double-double effort of 24 points and 24 rebounds alongside six assists, three blocks, and one steal while Tio churned out 20 markers.

This is the league's 14th overall triple OT with the last one back in the 2019 Governors Cup between NorthPort and NLEX.

Scores:

Meralco 116 – Hodge 20, Quinto 19, Miller 18, Black 18, Maliksi 16, Newsome 14, Banchero 5, Almazan 2, Pascual 0, Rios 0, Caram 0.

Phoenix 107 – Williams 24, Perkins 20, Tio 20, Tuffin 16, Jazul 13, Alejandro 6, Mocon 6, Manganti 2, Muyang 0, Soyud 0, Garcia 0, Rivero 0.

Quarters: 13-21, 39-47, 53-62, 84-84, 95-95, 103-103, 116-107

—JKC, GMA Integrated News