Barangay Ginebra San Miguel moved within reach of a successful title defense, turning back the Meralco Bolts, 85-74, in Game Five to seize a pivotal 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven Oppo PBA Governors’ Cup finals on Sunday at Philippine Arena in Bulacan.
Justin Brownlee led the way with 20 points and 12 boards while Best Player of the Conference Greg Slaughter tallied 17 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks in his first game as a starter in the series.
Ginebra can close out the series on Wednesday at the same venue, looking to annex the crown it won last year.
The Gin Kings pulled off the win despite squandering an 18-point lead and allowing Meralco to come back in the game that drew 36,445 fans, a PBA finals record.
Ginebra sat on a comfortable 33-15 cushion after unleashing a 21-2 run in the first half.
Meralco countered with a 14-3 run and was able to cut its deficit to seven, 42-35.
With the Bolts discovering their outside touch and Allen Durham being a monster inside once again, Meralco continued its surge in the third quarter.
Durham finally gave Meralco its first taste of the lead, 60-58, with over three minutes left in the quarter.
But Ginebra quickly woke up, taking a 66-62 lead entering the final quarter thanks to a 5-0 mini-run.
The Gin Kings finally put away the Bolts in the deciding quarter after Kevin Ferrer’s interception which led to a Brownlee and-one sparked a 10-1 run that handed Ginebra a commanding 84-71 lead with just over two minutes left–enough to stave off the Bolts.
The scores:
Ginebra 85 – Brownlee 20, Slaughter 17, Tenorio 17, Devance 12, Aguilar 8, Thompson 5, Caguioa 4, Ferrer 2.
Meralco 74 – Durham 27, Lanete 11, Hugnatan 8, Caram 7, Hodge 6, Dillinger 6, Newsome 5, Amer 4, Tolomia 0, Faundo 0.
Quarters: 21-15, 42-35, 66-62, 85-74.
