By ADRIAN STEWART CO
Magnolia Chicken Timplados Hotshots completed a sweep of their 2023 PBA on Tour matches following a 106-92 beating of Terrafirma Dyip at the FilOil EcoOil Centre in San Juan City on Wednesday night, July 26.
James Laput finished with double-double of 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Joseph Eriobu contributed 15 markers, all in the second half, as the Hotshots ended the tournament with an 11-0 win-loss slate.
Andy Mark Barroca ended with 12 points, Aris Dionisio contributed 10 markers, while Jiovani Jalalon dished out 12 assists to go with three points for the streaking Magnolia team.
Holding to a slim 72-69 advantage after three quarters, the Hotshots got seven points from Eriobu, while also getting contributions from Dionisio and Barroca as the lead swelled to 92-79.
The Dyip still tried to play catch up behind Eric James Camson, but the Hotshots managed to pull away behind Eriobu and Laput as the lead reached its biggest at 106-89 late in the fourth period.
Aklanon Andreas Cahilig and Javi Gomez de Liano finished with 14 markers apiece, Camson added 13 markers while Juan Miguel Tiongson and Angelo Alolino ended with 12 each as the Dyip finished the tournament with a 4-7 slate.
In the other match, NLEX Road Warriors overcame a slow start to score a 97-84 victory over sister team TNT Tropang Giga. The Road Warriors improved to 5-5, while the Tropang Giga dropped to 1-9.
Down 17-37 after the first 12 minutes, the Road Warriors turned things around in the second quarter as they outscored the Tropang Giga, 24-8, to cut the deficit to 41-45 at the half.
The Road Warriors continued their rampage in the third quarter as they surged ahead at 74-68 before establishing their largest lead of the contest at 95-75 via a three-pointer from Celedonio Trollano.
Anthony Semerad top-scored with 23 points, including five three-point conversions, Trollano and Ilonggo Clint Doliguez added 16 markers apiece, while Kevin Alas and Sean Anthony had 14 and 11, respectively, for NLEX.
MAGNOLIA 106 — Laput 16, Eriobu 15, Barroca 12, Dionisio 10, Dela Rosa 9, Escoto 8, Ahanmisi 6, Mendoza 6, Murrell 6, Reavis 4, Tratter 4, Abueva 4, Jalalon 3, Corpuz 3.
TERRAFIRMA 92 — Cahilig 14, Gomez de Liano 14, Camson 13, Tiongson 12, Alolino 12, Go 10, Calvo 9, Daquioag 8, Alanes 0, Grospe 0.
Quarterscores: 24-17, 48-42, 72-69, 106-92./ASC, WDJ