PBA: Meralco stays perfect, downs Ginebra
MANILA, Philippines—Meralco remained undefeated after fending off Barangay Ginebra, 101-95, in the PBA Governors’ Cup Sunday night at Araneta Coliseum.
Tony Bishop led the way with 30 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists while key baskets from the locals helped the Bolts pull away late.
Meralco, which grabbed a share of the top spot with Magnolia at 4-0, went on a 14-4 run capped by a Chris Newsome layup to take a 101-93 lead with only less than a minute left.
Newsome finished with 12 points, five rebounds and seven assists while free agent acquisition Chris Banchero also hit 12 points off the bench with four rebounds and three assists in his debut for Meralco.
Allein Maliksi added 11 points, including a timely triple that gave the Bolts a 99-91 cushion with two minutes to go.
Justin Brownlee paced Ginebra with 27 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists.
He sank a 3-pointer that put the Gin Kings on the driver’s seat, 89-87, with 5:22 remaining before the Bolts responded with a game-clinching run.
The Kings took their second straight loss and dropped to 3-2.