MANILA, Philippines – Japeth Aguilar made the basket of his life that sent a crowd of 15,000 up on their feet at the buzzer as Barangay Ginebra beat out San Miguel Beer in a thrilling down-to-the-wire battle, grinding out a 97-96 win to move in the threshold of the PBA Governors Cup Finals at the Smart Araneta Coliseum Friday night.
In what’s easily the most exciting match in the tourney, the Gin Kings and the Beermen figured in a duel of runs in the first half then fought neck-and-neck all the way to a classic windup marked by big shots for big shots by the lead stars of the two teams.
But the biggest shot came from Aguilar who calmly drained the winning basket in the waning seconds signaling a frenzied celebration of the Kings and their huge cheering throngs.
Rookie Scottie Thompson churned out the first triple-double by a PBA homegrown player in 23 years, LA Tenorio had his own near triple-double job while Justin Brownlee had his big bombs, helping the Kings get into the doorstep of a first finals since the 2013 Commissioner’s Cup.
Thompson came through with 12 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in the first triple-double by a PBA rookie in 15 years. It was the first by a local in 23 years since Johnny Abarrientos had his lone triple-double in his checkered career in 1983.
“That was fun, a hard game. Both played to the highest of their ability, shot the ball well, and we just stayed in the game with our character,” said Ginebra coach Tim Cone.
“It was a huge shot from Japeth. The challenge of Sol (Mercado) and the rebounds of Scottie (Thompson) gave us extra possessions. That’s what a team is all about,” Cone also said.
With a 2-1 lead, the Kings now have got two shots at the best-of-seven finale versus the winner of the TNT KaTropa-Meralco semis matchup.
The Texters and the Bolts are both nursing injuries to key players as they go at each other for the third time tonight, fighting for the pivotal 2-1 lead in their own semis duel at the Big Dome.
Jared Dillinger is a doubtful starter for Meralco due to a hamstring strain, but the Bolts, nonetheless, set out for the 7 p.m. setto with high morale following their stirring 106-91 triumph Thursday night.
Beaten for only the second time in 14 games in the tourney, the Texters, meanwhile, are raring to bounce back even with injuries to Syrian reinforcement Michael Madanly and gunner Ryan Reyes.
The Beermen fired 11 three-pointers to fuel a 25-point turnaround in the first half, charging from an early 13-point deficit to race ahead at 45-33.
SMB then settled for a 55-51 halftime lead with Elijah Millsap and Alex Cabagnot making 15 and 10, respectively.
Millsap, Cabagnot, Marcio Lassiter and Ronald Tubid tossed in at least two triples each as they terribly outgunned the Kings who were good for only 2-of-15 clip from the arc in the first 24 minutes of play.
But as both picked up their game after the halftime huddle, the two teams engaged in a toe-to-toe battle all the way to the finish.