Barangay Ginebra defeats TNT to open 44th PBA season

Barangay Ginebra Kings dismantled TNT KaTropa, 90-79, in the 2019 Honda PBA Philippine Cup opener on Sunday at the Philippine Arena here.

The Gin Kings, who led 44-26 in the first half, sputtered in the middle quarters before regaining their bearings in the fourth period en route to the victory.

With a balanced attack, the Gin Kings were able to establish a 74-64 lead on Scottie Thompson's three-point play with 8:07 remaining in the fourth period.





Ginebra refused to ease on the gas pedal from there. More than three minutes later, the team was already leading 88-71 after Kevin Ferrer's layup off a Thompson feed in transition.

Japeth Aguilar set the tone for the Gin Kings, uncorking 15 of his 21 points in the first two quarters. He also had four rebounds and three blocks.

Greg Slaughter added 15 points and seven boards, while Sol Mercado had 11 points, six rebounds, and four assists in almost 25 minutes of action. Scottie Thompson was a point shy of a triple double as he hauled down 10 boards and the same number of assists. Kevin Ferrer scored nine points.

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RR Pogoy paced TNT with 21 points but was 1-of-9 from the three-point area. He also had 16 rebounds and two steals.

Jayson Castro had 17 points, 10 assists, four rebounds, and two steals while Don Trollano made three triples on his way to 15 points.

Playing his first game in a TNT uniform, Brian Heruela finished with 14 points, two rebounds, and the same number of assists and steals.

THE SCORES

Ginebra 90 - Aguilar J. 21, Slaughter 15, Mercado 11, Thompson 9, Ferrer 9, Mariano 6, Devance 5, Tenorio 5, Teodoro 4, Cruz 3, Caperal 2, Aguilar R. 0.

TNT 79 - Pogoy 20, Castro 17, Trollano 15, Heruela 14, Reyes 6, Cruz 4, Williams 2, Golla 0, Semerad D. 0, Miranda 0, Carey 0.

Quarterscores: 28-15, 49-42, 63-57, 90-79.

EXTRA DRIBBLES

- TNT struggled to find its mark the whole game. The team shot a woeful 9-of-41 from the three-point arc.

- Before the game, two Ginebra players were feted during the Leo Awards. Thompson was hailed Most Improved Player of the past season, while Japeth Aguilar was part of the Mythical First team.

- The crowd attendance for the opening day of the PBA's 44th season was 23,771.

NEXT GAMES

Ginebra - vs San Miguel on January 20 at the Araneta Coliseum

TNT - vs Phoenix on January 19 at the Ynares Center in Antipolo