Eastern beats Converge for back-to-back wins

Hong Kong Eastern defeated the Converge FiberXers, 117-106, to notch its second straight win in the PBA Commissioner's Cup on Friday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila.

The guest team led by as much as 12, 97-85, in the fourth period before Converge trimmed its deficit to within 3, 101-98, with 4:31 left. Cameron Clark, however, made back-to-back baskets to widen the gap, before Glen Yang's triple gave Hong Kong Eastern a 108-100 lead after Cheik Diallo's jumper.

Jordan Heading and Schonny Winston's late-game efforts put Converge again within five with less than two minutes left, but the Hong Kong-based team made a 6-0 run to seal the win.

Cameron Clark had 39 points and 15 rebounds, along with two assists and two blocks, to lead Eastern to a 2-0 record, while Hayden Blankley and Yang had 21 and 19 points, respectively.

The win spoiled Diallo's 43-point eruption as Converge slipped to 1-1. Alec Stockton led the locals of the FiberXers squad with 18 points.

Scores:

Eastern 117 – Clark 39, Blankley 21, Yang 19, Guinchard 14, Lam 11, Cheung 4, Cao 3, Chan 2, Pok 2, Xu.

Converge 106 – Diallo 43, Stockton 18, Heading 13, Winston 12, Arana 10, Racal 5, Nieto 5, Delos Santos 0, Santos 0, Javillonar 0.

Quarters: 21-20, 58-55, 91-83, 117-106.

—JKC, GMA Integrated News