Stephen Holt caught fire from long range and the Ginebra Gin Kings took the twice-to-beat advantage heading to the quarterfinals in the PBA Philippine Cup.
Anyone can step up on offense any given night for Ginebra.
There were games when Japeth Aguilar turned back the hands of time to lead the team. Other times, Scottie Thompson did it all.
But on Sunday night, June 15, it was Stephen Holt’s turn.
Stephen Holt goes for the basket. | Photo (c) RM Chua/One Sports
Holt shot six three-pointers on his way to producing a game-high 27 points in the Gin Kings' 98-80 win over Rain or Shine in the final elimination round game of the PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup.
Two of those triples were made in the final period where the Gin Kings turned a tight game into a breakaway to claim their seventh win and the No. 4 seed.
“This is Stephen all the time. This is Stephen in practice. He really leads by example. Tonight, he had a really good shooting night,” said Cone after the match at the Ynares Center in Antipolo.
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Holt's last three-pointer came in the 8:12 mark that hiked Ginebra's lead to 22, 89-67. Jayson David followed that up with a trey of his own to establish the crowd darlings' biggest lead, 92-67.
Aguilar (18-10) and Jamie Malonzo (15-10-5) each came through with double-double numbers. RJ Abarrientos added 11 points.
Ginebra, armed with a twice-to-beat edge, will now face fifth-seeded Converge in the quarterfinals.
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Meanwhile, Rain or Shine slid to No. 7 with its 6-5 tally. It will tangle with second-seeded NLEX, which also boasts a win-once incentive.
Adrian Nocum finished with 13 points, while Santi Santillan had 13 markers and 10 rebounds for the Elasto Painters.
Ginebra vs Rain or Shine scores:
GINEBRA 98 – Holt 27, J.Aguilar 18, Malonzo 15, Abarrientos 11, Thompson 8, Rosario 8, David 8, Adamos 2, Pessumal 1, Pinto 0, Cu 0, Ahanmisi 0, Gray 0, Mariano 0.
RAIN OR SHINE 80– Nocum 13, Santillan 13, Asistio 11, Malonzo 10, Mamuyac 9, Caracut 7, Clarito 6, Ildefonso 5, Datu 2, Norwood 2, Borboran 2, Escandor 0
Quarterscores: 32-21, 45-43, 74-67, 98-80.