By REYNALD MAGALLON
Justin Brownlee remained the ghost from the past that once again haunted Meralco in crunch time.
In an almost similar fashion when he first broke the hearts of the Bolts, Brownlee drained a stepback triple over Allen Durham with 10.1 seconds to lift the Barangay Ginebra to a nail-biting 104-103 victory in Game 2 of their quarterfinals series in the PBA Governors’ Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Saturday, Sept. 28.
Adding another thrilling battle to his storied rivalry with Durham, Brownlee engaged the hulking Meralco import in a shootout late before getting the last laugh with booming trey over his outstretched arms to hand the Kings a commanding 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series.
Brownlee carried Ginebra to his back anew and finished with 39 points to go with his seven rebounds, five assists, two blocks and a steal to point-for-point match Durham who had a conference-high of 39 points spiked by four triples with 14 rebounds, three rebounds and a block.
With Meralco looking to deliver the dagger hit after Durham made it a 103-101 lead for Meralco with 1:22 left, Brownlee stood at the forefront of the Kings defensive stand and blocked a Durham attempt.
He recovered the ball and dribbled past the halfcourt line before maneuvering and pulling off and draining a tough step back jumper – much to the delight of the huge crowd inside Big Dome.
Scottie Thompson provided support for Ginebra with 19 points and six rebounds while Maverick Ahanmisi, who also had a crucial triple inside the last two minutes, chipped in 15. RJ Abarrientos and Japeth Aguilar had 11 apiece.
Meanwhile in the first game, EJ Anosike put up a dominant show as San Miguel fended off a hard-fighting Converge, 107-100, to move on the cusp of a possible semifinals return.
Anosike looked a lot more comfortable as compared to his first game in Game 1 and erupted for 41 points – 17 of which he dropped in the third quarter where the Beermen seized control before shrugging off another late fightback from FiberXers.
Anosike also hauled down nine rebounds and dished out five assists while June Mar Fajardo posted another double-double of 15 points and 15 rebounds.
Kris Rosales also had eight of his 11 points in the second half while CJ Perez orchestrated the assault with eight assists on top of his 10 points.
The Beermen actually trailed for the majority of the first half before finally getting their offensive rhythm going in the third frame. SMB opened a 76-67 lead late in the third frame and even padded it at the biggest at 12, 95-83, early in the payoff period.
Converge, though, uncorked a 13-2 spurt to cut the lead down to just one, 97-96 with 3:04 left behind the combined efforts of import Jalen Jones and Bryan Santos.
A Marcio Lassiter trey, however, restored order for the Beermen, triggering a 10-4 finishing kick that put the game to rest.
The Scores:
First game:
SAN MIGUEL 107 – Anosike 41, Fajardo 15, Rosales 11, Perez 10, Lassiter 9, Romeo 8, Trollano 7, Cruz 6, Enciso 0, Brondial 0, Teng 0, Ross 0, Manuel 0.
CONVERGE 100 – Jones 36, Stockton 14, Arana 12, Santos 12, Winston 8, Andrade 8, Ambohot 4, Delos Santos 4, Cabagnot 2, Melecio 0, Caralipio 0.
QUARTERS : 23-25, 48-51, 78-72, 107-100
Second Game
GINEBRA 104 – Brownlee 39, Thompson 19, Ahanmisi 15, Abarrientos 11, J.Aguilar 11, Holt 6, Cu 3, Devance 0, Tenorio 0, Pinto 0, R.Aguilar 0.
MERALCO 103 – Durham 39, Newsome 23, Hodge 15, Quinto 8, Bates 7, Mendoza 6, Banchero 3, Pasaol 2, Caram 0, Rios 0, Almazan 0.
QUARTERS : 28-21, 48-41, 79-75, 104-103
