Bench scoring propels Harbour to PBL sweep

Harbour Centre went to its bench when its starters continued to struggle, beating Hapee Toothpaste, 87-77, to complete a six-game sweep of the first round elims of the 2009 PBL PG Flex Linoleum Cup yesterday at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.

Benedict Fernandez, Raffy Reyes and Boyet Bautista stepped up to deliver the crucial points for the Batang Pier, who beat the Complete Protectors for the third straight time since they clashed in the finals last June.

It was Harbour Centre’s sixth win in a row while dealing Hapee, waiting for the arrival of Chris Tiu, its third loss against the same number of wins.

Fernandez came off the bench to fire a career-high 20 points on a superb 8-of-11 shooting in 21 minutes.

The FEU standout hit 11 of his 13 first half points in the second quarter, powering the Batang Pier to a 44-38 halftime lead.

In the second game, Magnolia Purewater wore down Bacchus Energy behind a crippling defense for an 83-72 win.