CONVERGE boosted its shot at a PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinals berth with a huge 104-98 win over undermanned NorthPort Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Converge vs NorthPort recap
The FiberXers lost grip of a 17-point lead, but steadied the ship in the homestretch to book their second straight win for a 4-5 record.
Guard RK Ilagan scored five straight points for Converge in the endgame to preserve the win after the Batang Pier came to within 97-94.
Ilagan finished with a team-high 20 points, spiked by four three-pointers and a 7-of-9 shooting from the field.
"I just love the fight in this kid," said Cariaso of the Converge point guard. "We needed him. We called on him, and he was ready."
Until Ilagan came through with those clutch baskets, NorthPort was breathing down on the neck of Converge after Roi Sumang hit his lone trey for the night to trail by just three with 2:18 left to play.
"This is something that you need to expect," said Cariaso of the Batang Pier's repeated comebacks. "I think that's something we've learned the last couple of games that no matter if you're off or down, teams are going to keep fighting, keep pushing. So we have to be the same."
Rookie Jeo Ambohot added 15 points and seven rebounds, Abu Tratter with 14, while Justin Arana had a double-double of 13 and 10 rebounds, while going a perfect 5-of-5 from the field.
NorthPort went down to its sixth straight defeat (2-6) and missed the services of top gun Robert Bolick, who was nursing a sprained ankle he suffered during its game against TnT.
The Batang Pier likewise lost big man Jamie Malonzo in the third quarter after being called for a flagrant foul penalty 2 for throwing the ball on Arana.
He finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds and had eight in the third quarter that sparked NorthPort's comeback.
Kevin Ferrer fired seven triples to finish with a game-high 21 points for the Batang Pier, who also got 20 points and 12 rebounds from Arwind Santos.
The scores:
Converge (104) - Ilagan 20, Ambohot 15, Tratter 14, Arana 13, Hill 10, Murrell 8, DiGregorio 5, Bulanadi 5, Tolomia 4, Ahanmisi 4, Racal 3, Stockton 2, Browne 1, Adamos 0
NorthPort (98) - Ferrer 21, Santos 20, Sumang 15, Malonzo 13, Balanza 9, Calma 7, Ayaay 6, Javier 3, Vigil 2, Dela Cruz 2, Taha 0
Quarterscores: 21-12; 49-37; 79-67; 104-98.
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