MANILA, Philippines – Scottie Thompson hardly looked like a player who is not at 100% as he delivered an MVP-type performance for Barangay Ginebra.
Thompson racked up a triple-double of 21 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds as the Gin Kings sent the Blackwater Bossing crashing back to earth with a 112-98 rout in the PBA Governors’ Cup at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium on Tuesday, September 10.
“In my opinion, he’s playing about maybe 85% to 90% right now. He’s not fully 100%,” said Ginebra head coach Tim Cone of Thompson, who is slowly regaining his old form following a nagging back injury.
“We have to be careful with him in practice, we have to make sure we don’t wear him out and let his back flare up again.”
With vengeance on their mind following a 95-88 loss to Blackwater in their first encounter in Group B last August 30, Cone played Thompson for over 39 minutes despite wanting to limit the former league MVP’s playing time.
“We’re kind of handling him with kid gloves as much as we can, if you call 39 minutes of playing time kid gloves,” said Cone with a smile.
“We’re trying our best [to limit Thompson’s minutes], but he’s just too important to what we do and how we do it.”
“It’s really difficult to keep him off the floor and keep him out of practice, but we’re doing the best we can, the trainers are doing the best they can, and Scottie has done an incredible amount of work himself just trying to get himself back and play with a rhythm again,” Cone added.
Already ahead by 17 points in the opening half, Ginebra failed to keep its foot on the gas pedal as Blackwater managed to inch closer to just 2, 74-76, midway through the third quarter.
Luckily for the Gin Kings, two consecutive three-pointers by Thompson and Maverick Ahanmisi at the end of the third frame and a jumper by RJ Abarrientos in the first possession of the fourth period pushed their lead back to double figures, 93-82.
Ginebra never looked back the rest of the way as its lead even peaked at 19 points, 105-86, off a free throw by Justin Brownlee with 5:01 to play.
Brownlee fell one rebound short of a double-double as he finished with 20 points and 9 boards.
Blackwater import George King almost had a triple-double with 21 points, 11 rebounds, and 8 assists, but also recorded a game-high 6 turnovers, as they saw their three-game winning streak come to an end.
The Gin Kings improved their record to 4-2, while the Bossing fell to 3-4.
Meanwhile, the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters got back to their winning ways after pulling away late from the winless Phoenix Fuel Masters, 122-107.
Coming off a heartbreaking loss to the San Miguel Beermen — where eight-time PBA MVP June Mar Fajardo sank a game-winning jumper at the buzzer to hand Rain or Shine its first defeat — the Elasto Painters rode on a well-balanced attack against the Fuel Masters as seven players scored in double figures.
Adrian Nocum spearheaded Rain or Shine’s charge with 16 points, while import Aaron Fuller and Gian Mamuyac added 16 and 14 markers, respectively.
Anton Asistio had 13 points and Andrei Caracut, Caelan Tiongson, and Felix Lemetti poured in 12 each, while Jhonard Clarito contributed 10 for the Elasto Painters.
With Phoenix holding a 97-95 lead with under nine minutes left in the game, Rain or Shine suddenly unleashed a massive 12-0 rally in the next three minutes, capped by huge back-to-back three-pointers by Mamuyac.
Jason Perkins ended Phoenix’s drought with a layup at the 5:21 mark of the final frame, before Fuller and Nocum combined for another blitzing 7-0 run, 114-99, and the Elasto Painters eventually put the Fuel Masters away for good.
Phoenix import Brandone Francis — who celebrated his 30th birthday on Tuesday — fired a game-high 31 points, while Perkins posted a double-double of 22 markers and 11 rebounds.
The Elasto Painters remained at the top of Group B with a 5-1 slate, while the Fuel Masters slipped further to 0-6.
The Scores
First Game
Rain or Shine 122 – Nocum 16, Fuller 16, Mamuyac 14, Asistio 13, Caracut 12, Tiongson 12, Lemetti 12, Clarito 10, Ildefonso 6, Santillan 5, Borboran 2, Datu 2, Escandor 2, Belga 0.
Phoenix 107 – Francis 31, Perkins 22, Ballungay 11, Rivero 9, Garcia 8, Siyud 8, Jazul 4, Muyang 4, Alejandro 3, Tio 2, Mocon 2, Verano 2, Salado 1, Manganti 0, Tuffin 0, Daves 0.
Quarters: 31-33, 64-57, 87-85, 122-107.
Second Game
Ginebra 112 – Thompson 21, Brownlee 20, Abarrientos 15, Holt 14, J. Aguilar 14, Ahanmisi 8, Go 7, Tenorio 6, Mariano 4, Pinto 3, R. Aguilar 0.
Blackwater 98 – King 21, Rosario 18, Barefield 15, David 13, Chua 12, Ilagan 6, Escoto 5, Kwekuteye 3, Mitchell 3, Suerte 2, Corteza 0, Montalbo 0, Ponferrada 0.
Quarters: 36-22, 67-58, 91-82, 112-98.
– Rappler.com