Alec Stockton caught fire just in time for Converge. PBA Images
By Ivan Saldajeno

ANTIPOLO—Converge withstood an explosion from Sedrick Barefield and kept Blackwater at bay with a 99-94 win in their PBA Philippine Cup showdown on Saturday night at the Ynares Center 1.

While the whole of Luzon is bracing for super typhoon "Uwan", the FiberXers had to brave a "storm" from Barefield, who tried to will the Bossing with 33 points.

However, Barefield went cold within the last two minutes, missing a free throw that could have tied the game and two three-pointers that could have given Blackwater the lead.

Worse, Christian David, despite his team forcing Converge to 23 turnovers all game long, committed two crucial errors down the stretch as free throws from Alec Stockton and Juan Gomez De Liano iced the FiberXers' win.

Stockton finished with 28 points on 8-of-14 field goals, 22 in the second half, including 13 in the fourth quarter, two rebounds, two steals, and two blocks for Converge, which moved up to 4-2.

Gomez De Liano, who finally won a game even if he missed out on a double-double, added 14 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and two steals.

The two Justins, Arana and Baltazar, each chipped in 11-point double-doubles, with Baltazar adding 14 rebounds and Arana grabbing 11 of his own.

Barefield also had three rebounds and five assists, while David added 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting, seven rebounds, and three steals for Blackwater, which dropped to 1-5.

The Scores:

CONVERGE 98 – Stockton 28, Gomez de Liano 14, Baltazar 11, Arana 11, Winston 8, Muyang 8, Concepion 8, Garcia 5, Suerte 3, Racal 3, Delos Santos 0, Javillonar 0, Eguilos 0, Clemente 0

BLACKWATER 94 – Barefield 33, David 18, Paonopio 11, Tratter 10, Guinto 8, Mendoza 7, Mallilin 5, Murrell 2, Andrade 0, Jopia 0, Cruz-Dumont 0, Escoto 0

QUARTERS: 21-25, 49-46, 78-72, 98-94