Thompson drills game-winner, Abarrientos waxes hot to tow Barangay Ginebra past Magnolia

Barangay Ginebra gave its fans a present on Christmas Day after completing a come-from-behind victory against Magnolia, 95-92, on Wednesday in the PBA Commissioner's Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Scottie Thompson bailed Barangay Ginebra out as he drilled one from the corner with one second left. 

While it was Thompson who delivered the game-winner, it was RJ Abarrientos who waxed hot in the second half to help Ginebra overcome the Hotshots.

Abarrientos had 20 points overall, 17 of which came from the second half alone, as he drilled four triples in the said time frame.

Magnolia had a 55-41 lead at halftime before the gap ballooned to 22, 76-54, at 3:35 mark of the third period. Justin Brownlee had a trey after Jerick Balanza handed the Hotshots' biggest lead, then Abarrientos drilled three consecutive triples to cut Ginebra's deficit to within ten. The said frame closed at 78-67, still in Magnolia's favor.

The Hotshots were leading 82-72 early in the fourth period before Abarrientos made a triple, followed by three free throws off a Mark Barroca foul to put Ginebra within four. Barroca then made a jumper but Maverick Ahanmisi also connected from beyond the first arc off an Abarrientos assist to put Ginebra within three, 84-81. Another Abarrientos assist, this time to Japeth Aguilar, helped Ginebra to cut its deficit to just one at the 5:09 mark.

Brownlee's three-pointer handed Ginebra the lead anew with 4:30 left, before Calvin Abueva tied the game at 86. However, Brownlee drilled from rainbow country anew to give Ginebra an 89-86 lead, while Magnolia's Jerick Balanza had free throws to trim the gap to within one. Import Ricardo Ratliffe reclaimed the lead for Magnolia, but Brownlee made another trey as Ginebra led, 92-90, with 2:03 remaining.

Rome dela Rosa tied the game with 22 seconds remaining, but Barangay Ginebra had other plans as the ball ended up on Thompson's hands for the game-winner.

For head coach Tim Cone, Ginebra once again showed its 'Never Say Die' spirit.

"Just the aura of Ginebra of 'Never Say Die.' We don't represent it as much as the Jaworski days but we still feel it and we still talk about it and it's still part of our culture. Tonight, we lived up to Sonny Jaworski and his crew. We're all proud about that," Cone said.

Abarrientos, meanwhile, said Ginebra's Manila Clasico performance was for the fans, especially as 12,198 trooped to the Big Dome on Christmas Day.

"First of all, I think I just need to step up for Ginebra," Abarrientos said. "Christmas eh, lahat naman gusto manalo. Lahat gusto umuwi nang panalo, kahit si tito. Sabi ni Coach Tim, Never Say Die so kailangan ipakita yung best namin sa crowd, especially sa Manila Clasico."

Brownlee had 28 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and a block, while Troy Rosario and Thompson had 15 and 14 points, respectively. Barangay Ginebra also bounced back from its loss against Converge and improved to 4-2.

Ratliffe had 17 points, 16 rebounds, and four assists, while Barroca had 13 points as Magnolia slipped to 2-5.

Scores:

Barangay Ginebra 95 – Brownlee 28, Abarrientos 20, Rosario 15, Thompson 14, J.Aguilar 8, Holt 5, Ahanmisi 5, Tenorio 0, Cu 0, Mariano 0.

Magnolia 92 – Ratliffe 17, Barroca 13, Lee 11, Sangalang 11, Lucero 8, Balanza 8, Dela Rosa 7, Dionisio 6, Lastimosa 6, Abueva 5, J.Ahanmisi 0.

Quarters: 24-30, 41-55, 67-78, 95-92.

—JKC, GMA Integrated News