MANILA, Philippines – If there were still any doubts, a rare win over Barangay Ginebra showed NorthPort can hang with the big boys of the PBA.

The Batang Pier beat the Gin Kings for the first time in over four years and stayed on top of the Commissioner’s Cup after a thrilling 119-116 win at the PhilSports Arena on Wednesday, January 8.

Kadeem Jack, Arvin Tolentino, and Joshua Munzon formed a three-headed monster as league-leading NorthPort, normally Ginebra’s victim, finally got one over its longtime tormentor to hike its record to 7-1.

“Ginebra is beatable. We challenged our players. Tonight’s game is a statement game from us. Everyone’s questioning our team because we seldomly win over the big teams,” said Batang Pier head coach Bonnie Tan in a mix of Filipino and English. 

“I hope that with this win, we proved that we’re here to win games. We’re here to be competitive, we’re not just a team to be taken lightly.”

As usual, Jack paced NorthPort with 32 points on top of 16 rebounds and got sufficient support from top locals Tolentino and Munzon.

Tolentino fired 29 points with 5 rebounds and 3 steals before fouling out with two minutes left, while Munzon delivered 27 points, 6 assists, and 2 steals, including a crucial three-pointer that gave the Batang Pier a 117-109 lead.

Capitalizing on Tolentino’s exit, the Gin Kings cut their deficit to 117-114 and earned a shot at knotting the score when Justin Brownlee got fouled on a three-point attempt, but the three-time Best Import made only two of his three free throws.

Munzon and Jack then sank a free throw each inside the final 10 seconds to seal the win, which is NorthPort’s first over Ginebra since the 2019 Governors’ Cup.

“We prepared for this for pretty much the whole break. All the hard work we did paid off tonight,” said Munzon. 

Brownlee showed the way for the Gin Kings with 23 points, 12 rebounds, and 4 assists, although he coughed up a game-high 8 turnovers, perhaps an effect of still feeling under the weather.

Scottie Thompson, RJ Abarrientos, and Troy Rosario posted 17 points each in the loss as Ginebra fell short of a third straight triumph and slid to 5-3. 

The Scores

NorthPort 119 – Jack 32, Tolentino 29, Munzon 27, Flores 9, Navarro 8, Bulanadi 5, Onwubere 4, Cuntapay 3, Yu 2, Nelle 0, Jalalon 0.

Barangay Ginebra 116 – Brownlee 23, Thompson 17, Rosario 17, Abarrientos 17, Ahanmisi 12, Holt 11, Cu 9, J.Aguilar 8, Tenorio 2.

Quarters: 31-27, 67-58, 98-87, 119-116.

– Rappler.com