Barangay Ginebra drubs San Miguel behind the tandem of Rosario, Brownlee

Barangay Ginebra cruised past San Miguel with a methodical 93-81 victory, thanks to the duo of Troy Rosario and Justin Brownlee, as they picked up where they left off in the PBA Season 49 Commissioner's Cup on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. 

Rosario sizzled in the third quarter with 10 points to finish with a team-high 22 points on an efficient 64.3 shooting percentage while also collecting 10 rebounds and one block as the Gin Kings improved to 5-2. 

Brownlee, meanwhile, put on the finishing kick by scoring 10 of their last 13 points on the way to a 19-point outing laced with seven boards, two assists, three blocks, and one steal.

"I just think our guys really came out and just played great on the defensive side. Just a lot of heart led by this guy (Troy Rosario), he was all over the floor," Ginebra coach Tim Cone said. 

"He's always there defensively for us and on the boards but tonight, he was huge on the offensive side, knocking down baskets and getting offensive rebounds. Troy kinda represented our performance tonight."

Rosario came out of the halftime break inspired, burying six straight points in the third quarter that sent them to a sizable 54-34 lead before his two consecutive triples sent the Gin Kings to a 72-59 cushion midway in the fourth. 

Rosario's torrid offense allowed Ginebra to counter San Miguel's fiery perimeter shooting, which saw the Beermen once cut their deficit to just 10 to open the final frame. 

Even with Rosario's hot hands, Ginebra could still not break away for good with San Miguel staging a fightback courtesy of a Marcio Lassiter jumper that made it a narrow 82-72 lead for the wards of Cone. 

Fortunately for them, Brownlee specializes in taking charge come the endgame. 

The resident import knocked down a huge triple for an 85-72 advantage before unleashing three straight baskets to finish it off for Ginebra in their first game of the year. 

Stephen Holt and Japeth Aguilar chipped in on the offense with 15 and 11 points apiece while Scottie Thompson flirted with a triple-double showing with his eight markers, 12 rebounds, and 11 assists. 

San Miguel leaned on usual suspect June Mar Fajardo, who tallied 12 points, 23 rebounds, three assists, and two blocks as import Jabari Narcis put together 17 markers, 10 boards, and two blocks. 

—JKC, GMA Integrated News