Maverick Ahanmisi and his fellow starters shone as Barangay Ginebra regained its groove, coasting to a 110-96 win over Meralco in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Araneta Coliseum on Friday, December 22.
Ahanmisi fired a game-high 25 points, while two of his teammates breached the 20-point mark for the Gin Kings, who returned to the winning column and improved to 5-3 after back-to-back losses.
Christian Standhardinger produced a near-triple-double outing with 21 points, 12 rebounds, and 7 assists, while Scottie Thompson put up 21 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists in his return from a three-game absence.
Thompson got sidelined for nearly a month after hurting his leg against Blackwater in November, but he hardly looked like someone who missed significant time as he conspired with Standhardinger and Jamie Malonzo late.
Buckets from Chris Newsome and Cliff Hodge pulled the Bolts within striking distance at 79-86 before the trio combined for 20 points the rest of the way to safely guide Ginebra back on track for a twice-to-beat bonus.
Malonzo turned in 17 points and 6 rebounds, while import Tony Bishop tallied 12 points, 13 rebounds, 2 steals, and 2 blocks against his former team Meralco.
Bishop led the Bolts to the 2021 Governors’ Cup finals, but they fell to a Gin Kings side reinforced by Justin Brownlee, the import whose spot he is currently filling for.
Meralco trailed by just a single possession at halftime, 50-53, until Ginebra created some breathing room in the third quarter largely thanks to Ahanmisi scattering 12 points in the period as they mounted an 84-75 lead.
Zach Lofton churned out 23 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists in the loss that snapped the Bolts’ four-game winning streak.
Hodge had 17 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists, Aaron Black put up 14 points and 5 rebounds, while Bong Quinto and Allein Maliksi added 10 points each.
