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By ADRIAN STEWART CO
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Tuesday, December 27, 2016
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MANILA – The Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings leaned on the fiery game of Japeth Aguilar to score an 86-79 victory over the Star Hotshots in the 2016-2017 Oppo PBA Philippine Cup on Sunday night at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan.
Aguilar led the way with double-double 32 points, including a perfect 5-of-5 shooting from the three-point arc, and 12 rebounds for the Kings, which snapped a two-game slide for a 3-3 win-loss slate.
Joe Devance chipped in 17 markers, including nine in the opening frame, while LA Tenorio and Aljon Mariano combined 14 points for the Kings, which continued to play without center Gregory Slaughter.
The Kings started strong in the game behind Aguilar and Devance for a 28-16 lead but the Hotshots responded to come to within 33-30. However, back-to-back triples by Aguilar allowed the Kings to claim a 45-35 halftime edge.
The Hotshots went aggressive opening the second half behind Paul Lee, Aldrech Ramos and Marc Pingris to snatch a 51-50 lead. The Kings pulled away anew behind Aguilar at 59-54 but the Hotshots came to within 62-61 heading into the fourth.
The Kings were clinging to a 66-65 lead in the final frame until they went on a huge run behind Juan Paolo Taha and Aguilar for a 75-69 edge, but a triple by Lee allowed the Hotshots to come close at 75-72.
With the Hotshots failing to convert, the Kings padded its lead to 81-73 on baskets by Devance, Aguilar and Mariano with under a minute to go before Devance sealed the win with free throws.
“Christmas day games are always difficult to play because of all the distraction but there is a lot of honor in playing the game,” said Kings head coach Tim Cone. “We’re very blessed for the opportunity to play on Christmas Day.”
Lee finished with 20 points, including four triples, for the Hotshots, whose three-game winning streak was snapped with the defeat. The Hotshots also holds a 3-3 win-loss record./PN
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