THE quarterfinals cast is complete.
Blackwater clinched the last berth in the quarterfinals after putting down GlobalPort, 118-107, in a critical game in the homestretch of the 2017 Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City yesterday.
A week after surprisingly being shipped, Allein Maliksi immediately made his presence felt, leading the Elite’s attack and scoring 22 points right away to go with five rebounds.
Roi Sumang wasn’t too far behind, registering 21 points of his own for more offense for the Elite.
With GlobalPort star Terrence Romeo getting thrown out after being called for a flagrant foul penalty two at the 5:01 mark of the second period, Blackwater capitalized and never looked back.
The Elite carried a double-digit lead, 62-51, at the half and took care of business as well in the last 24 minutes to easily cruise to victory.
With this vital win, the Elite claimed the last spot in the next round as it improved to 5-5, eliminating GlobalPort (3-7) and Alaska (3-7) in the process.
The teams that will advance to the quarters are Barangay Ginebra, Meralco, NLEX, San Miguel, TNT KaTropa, Star, Rain or Shine and Blackwater.
The scores:
BLACKWATER 118 – Maliksi 22, Sumang 21, Walker 19, Digregorio 16, Marcelo 13, Erram 11, Belo 8, Pinto 8, Canaleta 0, Cruz 0.
GLOBALPORT 107 – Holloway 28, Pringle 27, Romeo 13, Baracael 11, Anthony 8, Guinto 6, Cortez 6, Arana 4, Cardona 4, Hubalde 0, Mamaril 0.
Quarters: 31-29, 62-50, 92-77, 118-107.