By REYNALD MAGALLON
Magnolia rode on a strong finishing kick to shake off an import-less but hard-fighting NorthPort, 105-94, and notch its first winning streak in Group A of the PBA Season 49 Governors’ Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Wednesday, Sept. 4.
Zav Lucero, Glenn Robinson III and Aris Dionisio all joined hands and spearheaded a 16-5 run that all but broke the backs of the gritty Batang Pier who fought tooth and nail despite missing the services of import Venky Jois and forward William Navarro.
Without his counterpart, Robinson III stamped his class with 25 points, 11 rebounds, four steals and two blocks while Paul Lee orchestrated the attack for the Hotshots with 20 points to go along with his 11 assists and five rebounds.
Lucero also proved to be a big thorn to the side of his former team as he put together his best performance in Magnolia uniform with a double-double of 16 points and 12 rebounds apart from his two blocks.
Jerrick Ahanmisi and Calvin Abueva had 10 apiece as Magnolia moved up to the upper half of the Group A standings after improving to a 3-2 record to end the first round of the eliminations.
The Hotshots, however, did not have an easy time dispatching the Batang Pier who not only managed to keep in step but at some point also take the lead. The two teams were on an 87-all deadlock with five minutes left in the final frame when the Hotshots embarked on a furious run sparked by a Robinson III triple and a layup from Lucero.
NorthPort scored on the other end courtesy of Sydney Onwubere but Magnolia retaliated with a triple from Dionisio, four-straight points from Lee and an emphatic baseline dunk from Robinson off a nice feed from Lucero to take a 101-91 lead.
A jumper from Lucero even stretched the lead to its biggest at 103-92 with 1:10 left in the clock.
Cade Flores stepped up and put up a conference-high of 23 points apart from his 10 rebounds and three blocks while Joshua Munzon chipped in 13.
NorthPort main man Arvin Tolentino, meanwhile, struggled heavily against the Magnolia defense, only finishing with 11 points although he tried to make up for it with 12 rebounds and six assists.
The Batang Pier closed out the first round at the fourth spot of Group A with a 2-3 record.
