Playoff cast completed

MANILA, Philippines, July 21 ------ Magnolia roared to its sixth straight win and in the process, decided the fate of teams in pursuit of the last spot in the PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinals. The Hotshots, powered by the triple-double game of Jio Jalalon, routed Rain or Shine, 118-87, to eliminate the Elasto Painters while giving Converge a free pass to the next round last night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Jalalon’s 16-point, 11-rebound, 12-assist piece provided the spark as the Hotshots stayed hot and picked up their seventh victory in 10 games for joint third with Barangay Ginebra. Rain or Shine’s fall to Magnolia led to 4-7 at the end of its elimination’s assignments – not enough to reach the 5-6 record posted by eighth-placed Converge. The FiberXers took care of business earlier in the day by turning back Blackwater, 92-90, to give themselves a fighting chance for a Last-8 berth in their maiden outing in the pro league.

Yesterday’s twin results completed the quarterfinal cast with two play dates to go in the elims. San Miguel Beer (9-2) and TNT (8-3) got the lock on the Top 2 and twice-to-beat advantage with Magnolia, Ginebra, Meralco (6-4), Blackwater (5-5) and NLEX (5-5) and Converge rounding out the post-elims group. ROS, which played without Gabe Norwood, Rey Nambatac, Mark Borboran and Jewel Ponferada due to health and safety protocols, joined NorthPort (3-7), Phoenix (3-7) and Terrafirma (0-10) in the exits.

Rookie Justin Arana banged in nine of his 13 in the final canto, including the tying and go-ahead baskets sandwiching a huge block on Jvee Casio, to lead the FiberXers to the pivotal win. “From the start, we made it clear what we’re playing for – that was to give ourselves a higher chance to make the playoffs, it being our first conference. I think that motivated us even more,” said Converge coach Jeff Cariaso. There’s also the redemption factor coming off their 89-66 blowout to Phoenix last Saturday, which put the team’s playoffs aspirations in jeopardy. “We got our butts kicked last game. We want to also make sure we came out better than our last game. We know deep inside we’re better than what we showed that game,” said Cariaso.

Source: philstar.com