Big endgame lifts Sosnovy Bor over Pasig

Artem Timofeev took over for Sosnovy Bor down the stretch. Chooks-To-Go Pilipinas

By Ivan Saldajeno

QUEZON CITY--Sosnovy Bor came alive in crunch time to beat Pasig, 21-19, to stay alive in contention for a quarterfinal spot in the FIBA 3x3 Kunshan Challenger on Saturday night.

In a must-win situation after losing to Liman, 18-22, in earlier Pool A play, Sosnovy Bor found itself on the verge of getting knocked out as Pasig took control of the match for most of it.

However, the turning point came at the two-minute warning, when Pasig went double-bonus penalty.

Despite struggling from the free throw line, Sosnovy Bor made the most out of the extra possession, and Artem Timofeev scored on a two-pointer to put his team ahead, 19-17, with exactly two minutes left.

Joshua Munzon tried to save Pasig as he drained a triple for a 19-all tie, but Vladislav Meleshkin hit the dagger deuce in the next play to win it for Sosnovy Bor.

Timofeev tallied seven points for Sosnovy Bor, which now needs to wait for the result of the last Pool A game between Pasig and Liman to find out if it goes through the quarterfinals or not.

Munzon finished with a game-high 10 markers for Pasig, which needs to drop 21 on Liman in their 7:40 p.m. match-up to make it to the next round.

The Scores:

Sosnovy Bor 21 - Timofeev 7, Meleshkin 6, Bazylev 6, Shangichev 2.

Pasig 19 - Munzon 10, Statham 6, Ababou 3, Rike 0.

Follow him on Twitter: @IvanSaldajeno