MANILA — Earl Scottie Thompson erupted for 29 points as Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings stormed back from a 13-point deficit to eliminate San Miguel Beermen, 110-94, in their winner-take-all PBA Season 50 Governors’ Cup quarterfinals Game 5 on Tuesday night at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City.
Thompson added eight rebounds and five steals to claim Player of the Game honors, spearheading a second-half turnaround that propelled the Gin Kings into the semifinals against defending champion TNT Tropang 5G.
Jordan Murphy powered Ginebra with 31 points and 11 rebounds, while Rhon Jay Abarrientos contributed 19 markers as the Kings overcame a stubborn San Miguel squad.
Down by as many as 13 points, Ginebra mounted a furious third-quarter rally behind Thompson, Murphy and Nard John Pinto to seize an 84-82 advantage entering the final period.
The Gin Kings sustained their offensive assault in the fourth quarter, with Abarrientos helping stretch the lead to as many as 19 points midway through the period to put the game beyond San Miguel’s reach.
George King paced the Beermen with 31 points, while June Mar Fajardo finished with 20. Jaymar Perez chipped in 15 markers, and Celedonio Trollano added 10.
Ginebra head coach Tim Cone credited his team’s defensive adjustments, particularly against King, for the decisive fourth-quarter surge.
“I just thought that we did a better job of guarding George King in the fourth quarter. We tried to limit his touches and deny him a little bit more,” Cone said.
“We got a break when June Mar went out a little bit, and then the foul trouble… We started the game right from the very start, trying to get the ball to Jordan and we wanted to attack that match-up, and see if we could get him in foul trouble,” he added.
Ginebra will next face TNT in the semifinals beginning December 4, following the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers./PN
