By REYNALD MAGALLON
New Kings Abarrientos, Holt, Garcia star in clutch as Ginebra nips New Taipei
The new Kings on the block were quick to introduce themselves to the Barangay.
RJ Abarrientos, Stephen Holt and Paul Garcia all delivered big hits down the stretch as the depleted Ginebra team survived New Taipei, 91-87 in the Macao WUS International Club Basketball Challenge at the Tap Seac Multi-sports Pavilion on Wednesday, July 31.
Rookies Abarrientos and Garcia turned heads in their first game as part of the Kings with the former drilling a clutch three-pointer while the latter scored all of his seven points in a stretch that sparked Ginebra’s finishing kick in the final frame
Abarrientos lived up to the billing and fired 20 points including the triple that gave Ginebra an 88-84 lead before Garcia scored on a gutsy drive that kept a 90-87 cushion for the Gin Kings with 1:31 left.
Aside from the rookies, Ginebra’s offseason acquisitions in Holt and Isaac Go also made their presence felt. Holt finished with 19 points while Go chipped in 11 as they provided support to Japeth Aguilar who wound up as the team’s leading scorer with 23 points.
Ginebra actually led by as many as eight points in the second half behind a third quarter explosion from Abarrientos although the Kings suddenly found themselves trailing early in the fourth quarter after a 7-0 spurt from the Taiwanese.
Garcia had five straight points to keep Ginebra within striking distance before Aguilar and Holt scored some crucial baskets – the last of which a layup from the Ginebra guard gave the team the lead for good, 85-84.
The stellar performance from Ginebra’s new guys came at a time when the team was missing the services of a handful of players in the likes of Scottie Thompson, Jeremiah Grey, Jamie Malonzo and Maverick Ahanmisi.
It was also the first game the Kings played without Christian Standhardinger who the team shipped to Terrafirma along with Stanley Pringle to acquire Go and Holt.
