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| Ian Sangalang's career-high sparked Magnolia's huge win against NorthPort. Dennis Acosta |
MANILA—Magnolia put a stop to its early slide in the PBA Philippine Cup after ending NorthPort's hot streak with a 104-97 win on Wednesday night at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
Ian Sangalang tallied a career-high 32 points to lead the way for the Hotshots, but clutch shots from Mark Barroca and Paul Lee sealed the deal for them after Fran Yu led the Batang Pier's final attack.
With Magnolia up 97-90, with 1:01 left, Yu went on a personal 7-3 run that cut the lead down to three, 100-97, with 34.8 seconds remaining.
Just when NorthPort put a tight defense on Magnolia in the next play, Barroca doused cold water on them by hitting a midrange jumper that upped the lead back to five, 102-97, with 24.3 seconds left.
Yu tried to keep the Batang Pier in the game, but he missed a three-point attempt.
Yu, though retrieved the ball after Joshua Munzon picked Calvin Abueva's inbound pass, giving them another chance to draw closer.
However, Munzon missed a left-corner three, and Zav Lucero missed a crucial putback before Lee iced the game with two free throws.
Sangalang went 14-of-20 from the field for 32 points even as he also grabbed 13 rebounds, one block, and one steal for the Hotshots, who moved up to 2-2.
James Laput added 14 points and five rebounds, Paul Lee and Jerrick Ahanmisi each tallied 13 markers, and Barroca had 12 points, seven rebounds, 10 assists, and five steals.
Lucero put up 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting, seven rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and two steals for the Batang Pier, who saw their four-game winning run snapped as they fell to 4-2.
The Scores:
MAGNOLIA 104 – Sangalang 32, Laput 14, Ahanmisi 13, Lee 13, Barroca 12, Mendoza 7, Abueva 6, Eriobu 3, Escoto 2, Tratter 1, Jalalon 1, Murrell 0
NORTHPORT 97 – Lucero 18, Yu 15, Tolentino 14, Munzon 11, Zamar 9, Navarro 9, Rosales 8, Paraiso 8, Flores 5, Calma 0, Adamos 0, Bulanadi 0
QUARTERS: 23-22, 46-45, 78-73, 104-97
Follow him on X: @IvanSaldajeno
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