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| Dave Moralde came up huge for the Cagers in an elimination game. MPBL |
BACOOR--Muntinlupa survived a fourth-quarter barrage from GenSan to hack out a 99-91 win in Game 2 of their MPBL Playoffs first-round series on Tuesday night at the Bacoor City STRIKE Gymnasium.
Banking on a second-quarter breakaway to eventually lead by as much as 27 points late in the third quarter, the Cagers found themselves on the verge of blowing the huge lead, but they still managed to escape the Warriors.
Muntinlupa outscored GenSan, 31-20, in the second quarter to open a 58-41 halftime lead and stretched it to 86-59 late in the third.
However, an 18-0 Warriors run spanning to the fourth cut the lead down to just nine, 86-77, with seven and a half minutes left.
Despite Muntinlupa finally getting to score midway through the fourth, GenSan continued to knock on the door, and back-to-back threes from Mark Cruz cut the lead down to five, 96-91, with 2:08 remaining.
However, Cruz, a steady free throw shooter, missed three free throws that could have brought the Warriors closer, and that became the highlight of their endgame drought to let the Cagers escape.
Dave Moralde led Muntinlupa, which forced a Game 3 in their playoff affair next Tuesday, with 18 points, six rebounds, and four assists.
Ian Melencio flirted with a triple-double as he tallied 16 points, 14 rebounds, and eight assists with two steals.
Cruz finished with 19 points, four rebounds, and five assists to lead GenSan, which lost PBA legends John Wilson and Jervy Cruz due to separate ejections during the second half.
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