Joshua Munzon ushers pacesetting Northport to victory vs Ginebra
Northport finally snapped a 14-game losing streak after a nail-biting 119-116 win over Ginebra with Joshua Munzon playing a huge role in the PBA Season 49 Commissioner’s Cup on Wednesday night, January 8, at the Philsports Arena.
“It’s a statement win for us,” declared Batang Pier head coach Bonnie Tan, whose team maintained its lead in the rankings with its impressive 7-1 win-loss record.
Despite Northport's explosive 5-0 conference debut, there were questions regarding the team's legitimacy. Tan hopes that his Batang Pier's thrilling victory over the Gin Kings will ultimately diminish doubts.
"Everyone's questioning the status of the team, that we are not winning against the big teams. I hope with this win, we proved that we're here to win games," said Tan. "We're here to be competitive. We are not just here to participate."
In front of a hostile crowd in Pasig, the team’s success was centered on the formidable trio of import Kadeem Jack and local aces Arvin Tolentino and Munzon, with the latter assuming the role of main protagonist for the Batang Pier in one of their greatest victories in franchise history against the crowd darlings.
Munzon scattered 27 points on the stat sheets, along with two rebounds, six assists, two steals, and one block, hailing him the Best Player of the Game.
“Going into the break, we knew that we will play a tough team in Ginebra, one of the better teams in the league. We’ve been preparing for them pretty much the whole break and all our hard work paid off tonight,” said Munzon.
“We were able to stick to the game plan and we made it happen,” he added.
Munzon’s efforts proved to be sufficient for the team as Tolentino, who finished with 29 markers and five boards prior to his exit, was fouled out in the closing seconds of the game.
Jack top scored for the Batang Pier, finishing with a game-high 39 points on top of 16 rebounds, three assists, and a steal.
Munzon and the Batang Pier have a chance to convert more skeptics into believers when they face another league contender in Meralco on Tuesday, January 14, at Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
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.
Ginebra 116 – Brownlee 23, Thompson 17, Rosario 17, Abarrientos 17, Ahanmisi 12, Holt 11, Cu 9, J.Aguilar 8, Tenorio 2.
Quarter Scores: 31-27, 67-58, 98-87, 119-116.
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