BARANGAY Ginebra and Meralco opened 2025 on a winning note by disposing of their respective opponents at the resumption of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup on Sunday night.
The Bolts held sway in the endgame against an error-prone Eastern side, 88-83, while the Kings had a ready answer for every Beermen run in the fourth quarter to take a 93-81 win.
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The win snapped the Bolts two-game slide, moving them up to a 4-2 record for sixth spot, while the Kings won back-to-back games during the holidays and improved to a fourth-running 5-2 slate.
Eastern is currently in between Ginebra and Meralco at 6-3, but the Beermen fell out of the .500 mark at 3-4 with their second straight loss.
Here are the takeaways from the PBA’s first playdate for the year:
1. IMPORT CHANGE BACKFIRE ON SMB? – people of course were caught by surprise when the Beermen decided to bring in Jabari Narcis and replaced Torren Jones. The 30-year-old Jones played decent in his first two games with the team including a 115-102 win over Blackwater. But shortly upon its return from Hong Kong playing in the EASL, Jones was relegated to the sidelines as the Beermen brought in Narcis. Unfortunately, in the two games Narcis played, the defending champion didn’t get the numbers and effort it was looking for from the import, resulting in losses against contenders Eastern and Ginebra. Against the Kings, Narcis was even outrebounded by teammate June Mar Fajardo, 23-10. Jones remains with San Miguel as one of its import in the EASL in a team up with Narcis. Question is can San Miguel still bring in Jones back in the PBA to take over the place of Narcis?
2. MERALCO A DANGEROUS TEAM WHEN HEALTHY – the Bolts struggled amid a spate of injuries that hit their key players. But returning with an almost complete lineup to start the year showed the potential of this franchise by winning over guest team Eastern. Akil Mitchell, slowly recovering from a broken nose, tallied 31 points, 14 rebounds, five assists, and seven steals. Bong Quinto was steady as usual with 16 points and a perfect 3-of-3 from three-point range, while Chris Newsome and Aaron Black combined for 18 points and came through with clutch baskets in the homestretch. Big men Raymond Almazan and Brandon Bates are now back in harness to give the Bolts the needed size and length in the frontcourt.
3.NEAR TRIPLE DOUBLE FOR SCOTTIE THOMPSON – after hitting the game winner in the Kings’ 95-92 victory over the Magnolia Hotshots last Christmas Day, Thompson played low key against San Miguel as free-agent recruit Troy Rosario took over the scoring chores to lead the team. Like what he usually does, Thompson contributed in the other departments by grabbing 12 rebounds and dishing out 11 assists. He finished with eight points and fell just short of yet another triple-double.
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