North subdues South in All-Star Game

PBA

By Ivan Saldajeno

QUEZON CITY--The North All-Stars lost a 16-point lead but hung on to a 154-151 win against the South All-Stars in the 2016 PBA All-Star Game at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Sunday night.

The Luzon-based players even had a later nine-point cushion nearly going down the drain but eventually withstood the late challenge of the best from Visayas and Mindanao.

The North All-Stars held a 42-26 lead late in the first quarter and kept their advantage at double digits for most of the second quarter.

But the South All-Stars slowly chipped the gap and eventually led, 96-94, in the third period.

The North quickly recovered and held a 152-143 advantage with 2:17 remaining in the fourth frame.

Junemar Fajardo tried to play hero for the South as he nailed eight unanswered points to cut the gap to one, 152-151, with 33 seconds left.

But Troy Rosario saved the day for the North as he followed up on a Paul Lee shot for the full-time count with 5.7 seconds to go.

Jeff Chan's three-point attempt that could have forced the draw failed to hit the mark.

Alex Cabagnot led the North with 29 points, five rebounds, three assists, and one steal en rout to being named the All-Star Game MVP.

Fajardo finished with 25 points, nine rebounds, one assist, one block, and two steals for the South, which won the pre-game dance-off.

Box Scores:

North All-Stars 154-Cabagnot 29, Romeo 25, Aguilar 21, Rosario 21, Pingris 16, De Ocampo 13, Caguioa 9, Castro 8, Norwood 7, Pringle 3, Lee 2

South All-Stars 151-Fajardo 25, Garcia 22, Lastimosa 21, Cruz 20, Devance 17, Yap 13, Chan 12, Barroca 11, Taulava 4, Quinahan 2, Ross 2, Thompson 2

Quarterscores: 42-33, 79-73, 117-115, 154-151

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