MANILA – Alaska Aces snapped its losing run. It punched the final 2019 Honda PBA Commissioner’s Cup quarterfinals ticket with a 108-103 win over the Meralco Bolts last night at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
Vic Manuel top-scored with 23 points while reinforcement Diamon Simpson had 20 points, 23 rebounds and five assists.
The Aces listed the all-important win after losing its last five elimination round games.
Chris Banchero fell short of a double-double with 15 markers and nine assists while Jvee Casio, Simon Enciso and Jeron Teng had 14, 13 and 12 markers, respectively.
With the victory, the Aces secured the eighth and final quarterfinals slot and will have a twice-to-win disadvantage over top-seed TNT KaTropa on Sunday evening at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Aces seemed headed to elimination as they trailed 81-86 late in the final quarter but Manuel and Banchero came up with crucial baskets to tie the count at 96-all and forced an overtime.
The Aces trailed anew early in the extension but shots from Manuel, Casio and Teng gave them a 106-103 edge before they seal the victory on free throws from Casio and Banchero.
Delroy James tallied 34 points, eight assists and seven rebounds, while Chris Newsome and Raymond Almazan added 20 and 14 markers, respectively, as the Bolts bows out of contention./PN
