'Magic Brownlee' was a thorn in the Beermen's side once more for a scorching Governors' Cup semis showing for the Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings.
Justin Brownlee and the Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings draw first blood as they torched the San Miguel Beermen, 122-105, in Game 1 of their Governors’ Cup semifinals series on October 9, Wednesday.
The 36-year-old dropped 20 markers alone in the third frame, including three four-pointers as the Gin Kings outscored Beermen in that quarter, 34-20, en route to a commanding win against their rival.
He finished with five from the four-point line with three triples and eight rebounds to earn the Player of the Game honors.
Stephen Holt churned in 30 markers with rookie RJ Abarrientos addign 13 and Scottie Thompson tallying a 10-point,10-assist double-double.
It marked the fourth-straight victory for Brgy. Ginebra this playoffs after completing a three-game sweep of the Meralco Bolts in the quarterfinals.
After a tight opening half, Brownlee and the Gin Kings slowly pulled away in the second half and took their first double-digit lead at 71-60 with 9:29 second left in the third frame.
They build their biggest lead at 24 points at 102-78 after a Scottie Thompson layup in the early moments of the fourth quarter and never looked back.
Meanwhile, EJ Anosike led the way for the Beermen with 27 points, Marcio Lassiter chipped in 18 points and June Mar Fajardo posting 16 markers and 16 boards.
Just two days after their Game 5 win against the Converge FiberXers, San Miguel kept it tight in the opening half and trailed only by five points, 58-63.
Game 2 of the series resumes on Friday, October 11 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum at 7:30 p.m.
The scores:
Barangay Ginebra 122 – Brownlee 33, Holt 30, Abarrientos 13, Thompson 10, Ahanmisi 9, J. Aguilar 9, Pinto 8, Devance 8, Adamos 1, Cu 0.
San Miguel 105 – Anosike 27, Lassiter 18, Fajardo 16, Perez 13, Ross 7, Rosales 6, Romeo 6, Enciso 6, Cruz 4, Tautuaa 2, Nava 0, Brondial 0.
Quarterscores: 27-28, 63-58, 97-78, 122-105