JUAN Gomez de Liano took over in the final three minutes as Marinerong Pilipino scored a 69-64 Game Three win over over Apex Fuel-San Sebastian on Wednesday at Smart Araneta Coliseum and barge into the 2022 PBA D-League Aspirants' Cup Finals.
The young journeyman nailed back-to-back treys for the Skippers before scoring the huge layup to make it a 66-62 lead with 52.4 seconds left.
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Arvin Gamboa then put on the finishing touches in the triumph, first with a split from the line and then a shot clock-beating jab with 12.5 ticks to spare.
"It was really all about our team mindset. We just had the right mindset coming into this do-or-die game," said Gomez de Liano, who finished with 23 points, eight rebounds, and six assists.
AC Soberano made a pair of treys for his 14 points off the bench, while Jollo Go had 11 in the win.
Marinerong Pilipino arranged a title clash against EcoOil-La Salle starting on Sunday, with the Yong Garcia-coached squad hoping to finally win the big one after finishing as runner-up in the 2019 Foundation Cup to BRT Sumisip-St. Clare.
It was a tough end for the conference for the top-seed Golden Stags which relied on Romel Calahat's 19 points and nine rebounds in this defeat.
The scores:
Marinerong Pilipino 69 - Gomez de Liano 23, Soberano 14, Go 11, Bonifacio 7, Carino 6, Nocum 4, Gamboa 3, Manlangit 1, Pido 0, Bonsubre 0, Agustin 0.
Apex Fuel-San Sebastian 64 - Calahat 19, Sumoda 15, Villapando 12, Desoyo 6, Felebrico 6, Altamirano 3, Escobido 3, Are 0, Yambing 0, Shanoda 0, Cosari 0, Una 0.
Quarterscores: 7-11; 25-26; 44-43; 69-64.
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