It took a village for Barangay Ginebra to tally its first win in the PBA Season 50 Philippine Cup, as the Gin Kings blasted the TNT Tropang 5G, 92-77, Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Six Ginebra players finished in double digits, led by Japeth Aguilar with 17 points and 10 rebounds. RJ Abarrientos chipped in 14 markers off the bench, while Troy Rosario had 13 points and 13 rebounds.
Scottie Thompson, Stephen Holt and Norbert Torres each had 10 points for the winning squad.
TNT actually started the game off with a three-point lead, but it did not take long for Ginebra to find its rhythm and leave the Tropang 5G in the rear-view mirror.
After an and-one play by RR Pogoy to make it a three-point game, 10-13, Ginebra dropped a massive 20-4 run capped by a layup by Norbert Torres to break the game wide open.
That hot start was enough for the Gin Kings to breeze through to the finish line, as TNT could not close the gap to within 10 points.
Simon Enciso tried to shoot TNT back into the game, sinking five 3-pointers in the fourth quarter.
But Ginebra’s lead was just too big to overcome, as the Tropang 5G had an answer for every run.
Jeremiah Gray produced eight points for the Gin Kings while Sonny Estil had seven.
Enciso top-scored for TNT with 17 points in 17 minutes. Kevin Ferrer chipped in 11 points, as none of the Tropang 5G’s starters finished in double digits.
Ginebra will be back in action against the Meralco Bolts on Friday at the same venue, while TNT will take on the Converge FiberXers on Saturday at the Chavit Coliseum in Ilocos.