MANILA – Barangay Ginebra moved to within a win from claiming the PBA Commissioner's Cup championship after holding off Bay Area Dragons for a 101-91 win in Game 5 of the finals on Sunday night in front of 21,823 fans at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
Stanley Pringle came up huge down the stretch as he nailed back-to-back triples that sparked the deciding 10-2 run as the Gin Kings survived after the Dragons cut a lead as high as 18 down to five.
Justin Brownlee led Ginebra, which can close out the series in Game 6 on Wednesday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City, with 37 points on 14-of-22 shooting and eight rebounds.
Pringle added 20 points on 6-for-9 shooting from three-point range and five rebounds.
Hayden Blankley led Bay Area, which now needs to win Game 6 to send the series to a deciding Game 7 on Friday night at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, with 29 points, nine rebounds, three assists, and two steals before falling down late with a foot injury.
Liu Chuanxing added 10 points and 11 rebounds off the bench. (PNA)
