MANILA — Magnolia Chicken Timplados Hotshots survived a furious Meralco Bolts comeback and kept their PBA Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup campaign alive after escaping with a tense 95-89 victory in the quarterfinals Wednesday night at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
The Hotshots squandered a commanding 19-point lead and even fell behind late, 83-84, before regaining composure in crunch time to force a winner-take-all quarterfinal showdown against the twice-to-beat Bolts on Saturday.
Jerom Lastimosa sparked Magnolia’s decisive closing run by tying the game from the free-throw line before Clint Chapman buried a crucial triple that restored the Hotshots’ lead at 87-84.
Meralco cut the deficit to just one point, 86-87, but Lastimosa answered with a clutch layup and two pressure-packed free throws before Paul Lee sealed the victory with two more charities.
Chapman powered Magnolia with a double-double performance of 21 points and 12 rebounds, along with three assists and a steal.
Lastimosa added 17 points, while Rome dela Rosa chipped in 11 markers.
Veteran big man Ian Sangalang delivered timely baskets down the stretch and finished with 10 points to earn Player of the Game honors for the Hotshots.
Chris Newsome paced Meralco with 23 points, while Marvin Jones and Kier John Quinto contributed 16 and 11 points, respectively.
The Bolts entered the quarterfinals carrying a twice-to-beat advantage after finishing in the Top Four at the end of the elimination round.
Meanwhile, TNT Tropang 5G also stayed alive after escaping with a narrow 96-93 win over NLEX Road Warriors in another quarterfinal clash.
Import Bol Manute Bol delivered in the clutch for TNT, sinking key free throws in the closing minute after the Tropang 5G saw their 93-86 lead disappear with under two minutes remaining.
Bol split his free throws to give TNT a 94-93 advantage with 1:08 left before adding two more charities with five seconds remaining.
NLEX still had a final chance to force overtime, but Cady Lalanne missed a three-point attempt at the buzzer.
Bol finished with a dominant double-double of 34 points and 14 rebounds for TNT.
Calvin Oftana added 19 points, while Roger Pogoy and Jayson Castro chipped in 15 and 14 markers, respectively./PN
