FACING old rivals Allen Durham and the Meralco Bolts for the first time since 2019, Barangay Ginebra's resident import Justin Brownlee stepped on the shoes of the Gin Kings' finisher again.
Brownlee fired 10 clutch points in the fourth period to power the Gin Kings to a 99-92 victory and a 1-0 head start against the Bolts in the PBA Governors' Cup best-of-five quarterfinal series Friday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
Tallying 29 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists and three steals, Brownlee outplayed Durham in the initial salvo of their fourth faceoff since memorable encounters in the 2016, 2017 and 2019 Governors' Cup finals.
Durham, who beat Brownlee for Best Import honors but lost the crown in those prior entanglements, finished with 17 markers and 13 boards as he yielded the Meralco scoring honors to Cliff Hodge (23) and Chris Newsome (20).
Ginebra appeared headed for a runaway triumph when it seized a 66-51 tear halfway in the third. But Durham and Co. countered with a 20-8 closing barrage to close the gap to 71-73, then went on to wrest control, 78-77 at the 9:03 mark of the fourth.
Then Brownlee presided over a 22-14 closeout to seal the deal for the Gin Kings, whose pre-season acquisitions like Stephen Holt and rookie RJ Abarrientos are getting their feet wet on playoff basketball as a unit.
"It's an interesting dynamic for us. We haven't played Meralco this conference yet so it's been kind of a feeling-out process. Justin hasn't been against (Meralco consultant) Nenad (Vucenic) and (coach) Luigi (Trillo) before, Stephen and RJ haven't played against Meralco (in a playoff) so it's a feeling-out stage," Ginebra coach Tim Cone said.
"They're trying to play their game and we're trying to play ours. We came out on top but basically we just made more plays, especially Justin, down the stretch so that was the key. But it could have gone either way," he added.
Scottie Thompson delivered 19 markers, five boards and five assists while Holt shot 14, Japeth Aguilar had 10 in complementary roles for Brownlee.
"They're a tough team. They challenge you throughout the whole game, especially on the defensive end. They throw different looks and they're so disciplined. You know, they keep the same pace whether they up or down," said Brownlee.
"Throughout the years, it's just been a fun challenge (against Meralco). They've always been at the top of their game and always given us an A-plus game. So, it's always been tough but it's been fun against that group of guys over there that's very competitive," he added. (OL)
The Scores :
GINEBRA 99 - Brownlee 29, Thompson 19, Holt 14, J.Aguilar 10, Cu 9, Abarrientos 8, Ahanmisi 8, Devance 2, R. Aguilar 0.
MERALCO 92 - Hodge 23, Newsome 20, Durham 17, Banchero 11, Quinto 10, Caram 6, Almazan 5, Rios 0, Mendoza 0, Bates 0, Cansino 0, Jose 0.
QUARTERS : 28-24, 53-43, 73-71, 99-92.
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