When Juan Gomez de Liaño cooled off, Alec Stockton heated up and took over Saturday for Converge.
Stockton picked up where his backcourt partner left off, going off in the second half to lift the FIberXers past Blackwater, 99-84, in the PBA Season 50 Philippine Cup at the Ynares Center in Antipolo.
Stockton — who led the uprising after the break and wound up with 28 points, two rebounds, two steals, and two blocks for the FiberXers, who are now tied in the standings with idle Magnolia and San Miguel.
Before Stockton delivered the finishing kick, Gomez de Liaño fired 11 points in the first 24 minutes of action but ended up with only 14 points. Still, he had seven rebounds, five assists, and two steals in the win.
Upset after a subpar showing in the loss against San Miguel, Stockton said the FiberXers made a conscious effort to bounce back and did so splendidly.
“We’re very upset. We really wanted to compete with them [SMB], although we kinda did but towards the end we kinda melted down,” said Stockton.
“Sabi namin kay Gov [head coach Delta Pineda], we really wanted to bounce back this game although we started really bad again. In the end we wanted to make sure we executed down the stretch.”
Behind Stockton, Converge led by as many as 12, 74-62, in the third period. But it didn’t take long before Blackwater recovered and turned into a neck-and-neck match.
After Justin Arana tied the count at 92-all with 3:49 left to play, it was a battle on the foul line between two teams.
In the dying seconds, Stockton calmly sank two of his free throws before Gomez de Liaño split his for insurance and the victory.
“Siguro yung heart ng mga Converge [players] yung nagpanalo sa’min,” said Pineda.
Justine Baltazar and Justin Arana quietly did the dirty work, with both finishing with a double-double.
Baltazar put up 11 points, 14 rebounds, and seven assists, while Arana had 11 points and 11 rebounds for the FiberXers, who added to the misery of the Bossing.
Sedrick Barefield led the team with 33 points, a point shy of his conference best, but Blackwater lost a fifth straight game for a 1-5 mark.
Christian David impressed with 18 points, seven rebounds, and three steals, but committed a costly turnover that led to Stockton’s free throws with 5.3 ticks remaining.
Dalph Panopio flirted with a triple-double, finishing with 11 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists as the Bossing continued to miss the services of RK Ilagan.
Ilagan is still out with a meniscus injury.
Converge vs Blackwater Scores:
CONVERGE 99– Stockton 28, Gomez de Liano 14, Baltazar 11, Arana 11, Winston 8, Muyang 8, Concepion 8, Garcia 5, Suerte 3, Racal 3, Delos Santos 0, Javillonar 0, Eguilos 0, Clemente 0
BLACKWATER 94 – Barefield 33, David 18, Paonopio 11, Tratter 10, Guinto 8, Mendoza 7, Mallilin 5, Murrell 2, Andrade 0, Jopia 0, Cruz-Dumont 0, Escoto 0
Quarterscores: 21-25, 49-46, 78-72, 99-94
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Like most sportswriters, Jan Ballesteros once dreamed of becoming a professional hooper. But he learned the hard way that it’s not for everyone.
He continues to be involved in the sport he loves, but this time as a member of the PBA Press Corps. Aside from primarily covering the PBA, he is also assigned to cover Gilas Pilipinas.