NorthPort ends drought

MANILA, Philippines — Arvin Tolentino-spearheaded NorthPort took care of business in its last assignment in the PBA Philippine Cup eliminations, nipping Blackwater, 115-113, yesterday at the Caloocan Sports Complex.

Now the waiting game begins for the quarterfinals-chasing Batang Pier.

As they ended a harrowing five-game slump, the charges of coach Bonnie Tan finished the preliminaries with a 5-6 record.

This enabled their return to No. 8 ahead of idle Meralco (4-5) for now. But whether their five wins are good enough to get them in the playoffs or at least a rubbermatch for a Last-8 seat will depend on how the other aspirants will do in the remainder of the elims.

The Bossing, on the other hand, plummeted to their sixth consecutive loss for 3-6 overall. This left them in must-wins against league-leading San Miguel on Wednesday and Phoenix next Saturday to have a chance of still making it.

Tolentino assumed the savior’s role for NorthPort, which flirted with a big-time meltdown after blowing a 19-point lead in the third.

With the Bossing seizing a 113-107 upperhand behind the pounding of Troy Rosario and Christian David, Tolentino unleashed an 8-0 closing barrage to help the Batang Pier escape the blushes.

Tolentino scored 27 to go with 11 rebounds, seven assists and two blocks.

The sweet shooting wingman chipped away Blackwater’s lead with a mid-range shot and a transition basket then tied it all up with two clutch charities. After another empty Bossing possession, Tolentino hit a step-back jumper versus David to ease the Batang Pier ahead with 7.6 seconds left. Bossing vet Rey Nambatac tried to steal it but his attempt from deep missed its mark as the final buzzer sounded.

Tolentino scored 27 to go with 11 rebounds, seven assists and two blocks