GlobalPort stops Ginebra in OT, clinches quarters berth

Jay Washington could not have picked a better time to prove his real worth to GlobalPort.

Displaying his old, razor-sharp form, the 6-foot-7 Washington waxed hot with a career-best 30 points as the Batang Pier outlasted Barangay Ginebra San Miguel in overtime Friday night 113-106 and assured themselves of a quarterfinals seat in the PBA Governors Cup at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.

Acquired in a trade prior to the start of the season-ending conference that also involved high-leaping forward Japeth Aguilar who is now with the Kings, Washington led the way for the Batang Pier, which also got ample contributions from guard Sol Mercado, import Markeith Cummings and seldom-used Kelly Nabong in the pivotal juncture.

As a result, GlobalPort joined idle Barako Bull at sixth spot with identical 4-5 records, enough to advance to the quarterfinals for the first time since Sultan 900 Capital, Inc. franchise, headed by Mikee Romero, bought the team, then known as the Powerade Tigers, last year.

Throwing his full weight in the lane ,import Dior Lowhorn dominated with 41 points but the Gin Kings, with star guard LA Tenorio fouling out in regulation, lost steam in the extended period, causing them to drop to 3-5, barely hanging on to the eighth and final quarterfinals berth.

Backstopping Lowhorn was Jayjay Helterbrand, who finished with 18 points highlighted by a booming triple at the top of the key with 4.2 seconds left in regulation that forced overtime.

Earlier, playmaker Mark Barroca came through with a pair of buckets in the crunch to help San Mig Coffee eke out a nerve-wracking 88-87 win over feisty Meralco and lock up its hold on second spot that dangles a twice-to-beat edge in the quarterfinals.

Import Marqus Blakely pumped in 24 points while shooting guard PJ Simon scattered nine of his 20 markers in the fourth before the 5-foot-10 Barroca preserved their heroics and enabled the Mixers to notch their fifth straight win and sixth overall against three setbacks.

Mario West, who finished with 31 points, had the chance to steal the victory but had his last-gasp triple was blocked by Blakely from behind just before the final buzzer sounded, resulting in the Bolts’ fourth loss in nine outings.
 
The Main Man: After being “forgotten” for several conferences, Jay Washington showed why he’s a former two-time Best Player of the Conference awardee.

The top overall pick in 2005 proved he still has a lot of juice left in his 31-year-old tank, coming through with 30 points, spiked by four triples, on top of 14 rebounds, five blocks and two assists in 42 minutes.

His biggest jumper came with exactly a minute left in overtime, pushing the Batang Pier to a three-point lead.
 
Honorable Mention: After his verbal run-in with head coach Junel Baculi, Sol Mercado appears to have become better and smarter as the team’s leader.

The burly 6-foot pointguard scattered 27 points and issued a team-high eight assists, including a timely kickout feed to import Markeith Cummings that extended their lead to 111-106 going to the last 25.6 seconds.
 
Game Turning Point: After incurring a foul that enabled Lowhorn to make a completed three-point play that pulled the Gin Kings to within one, Washington redeemed himself by making a jumper for a 109-106 lead with 60 seconds to play.

The Gin Kings then failed to execute their play and paid the stiff price as Mercado issued a timely pass to Cummings, who calmly made a baseline jumper that stretched their lead to five, virtually sealing the deal with 25.6 ticks remaining.
 
 
They Said It:
GlobalPort coach Junel Baculi: “I had a procedure (on my eyes) earlier this morning kaya bawal ang maliwanag na ilaw, minor lang naman. It’s always tough playing Ginebra. They have quality players but our players won't give up. J-Wash came out of his shell. He's been struggling and Sol, after a spat naming dalawa, he knew how to be responsible for the team. Ang pointguard talaga ang extension ng coach sa game. He took the challenge head on at tinanggap niya. It’s a learning process sa franchise. Whoever it is (quarterfinals opponent), we'll be out there fighting for a win.”
 
GlobalPort forward Jay Washington: “This is a do-or-die game for us and we don’t want to play in a playoff match for a quarterfinals berth. Mentally, it’s been tough for me not being able to produce. I just had to work back to my college days and try to be very comfortable playing that long in the court.”
 
SanMig Coffee head coach Tim Cone: “We got off to such a good start then we started to take the game for granted. We relaxed a bit that carried over into the second quarter. I kept yelling at everybody not because I’m angry but to get under their skin. This Meralco team is a very good team. They are playing extremely well. We were lucky to be able to get through them. It’s nice to nestle on that top two spot. This is our sixth straight eliminations that we got top two or tied for two but we only got one championship. In the fourth quarter, we stepped up our defense. It’s good team effort.”
 
 
 
The scores:
 
First Game
San Mig Coffee (88) – Blakely 24, Simon 20, Mallari 8, Yap 8, Pingris 7, Barroca 6, Maliksi 5, Devance 5, Reavis 5, De Ocampo 0.

Meralco (87) – West 31, Hodge 19, Wilson 13, Reyes 6, Hugnatan 6, Salvacion 6, Cortez 4, Cardona 2, Guevarra 0, Ross 0, Allado 0.
Quarterscores: 34-24, 50-47, 64-70, 88-87.
 
Second Game
GlobalPort (113) – Washington 30, Mercado 27, Cummings 19, David 15, Miller 9, Taha 4, Nabong 4, Salvador 3, Lingganay 2.

Ginebra (106) – Lowhorn 41, Helterbrand 18, Tenorio 11, Caguioa 11, Ellis 8, Baracael 6, Maierhofer 6, Labagala 3, Mamaril 2, Urbiztondo 0, Wilson 0, Raymundo 0.
Quarterscores: 24-31, 52-52, 76-77, 101-101, 113-106.