Ginebra’s Brownlee bounces back with 49-point game

MANILA, Philippines -- After a tough offensive outing a few days ago against Hong Kong Eastern, Barangay Ginebra’s Justin Brownlee showed out in Wednesday’s 114-98 PBA Commissioner’s Cup win over the Terrafirma Dyip.

Brownlee exploded for 49 points on 19-of-29 shooting from the field, to go with 12 rebounds, six assists and two steals.

This performance came just a few days after Ginebra absorbed a 93-90 loss against Hong Kong, where the import finished with just 18 points on 6-of-23 from the field as he missed a total of 10 attempts from 3-point and 4-point areas.

After Wednesday’s win, Brownlee told reporters that the team wanted to come out on fire right from the get-go, especially after the tough loss against Eastern.

“Yeah, we definitely, as a team, just wanted to bounce back, you know, have a better outing from Eastern, even though I think, you know, we played okay. We didn't shoot the ball well, but I think the energy and, I guess, will to try to win was there. But tonight, you know, we just want to come out, be aggressive,” he said.

“I just found myself open a lot in this game. And I just try to take advantage of the open shots or, you know, open opportunities where I could drive or be aggressive either for myself, scoring or for my teammates,” he added.

Brownlee was consistent in the game against Terrafirma, scoring 25 points in the first half and 24 in the final two quarters.

His explosion helped Ginebra take a 22-point lead in the third quarter, which was eventually erased by the Dyip to just five in the fourth.

However, timely shots by Brownlee gave the Gin Kings the much-needed separation to help the squad go up to 3-1 in the season, while leaving Terrafirma still looking for their first win in this season’s Commissioner’s Cup.

Ginebra has had a tough schedule the past week. After a 109-100 win over the NLEX Road Warriors last Wednesday, they once again played a couple of days after -- against the Phoenix Fuel Masters, which they won, 94-72, before they faced Eastern on Sunday.

Brownlee said that he does not want to make fatigue as an excuse, as the guest team played great team defense against them, but the two-day rest they had gave them a needed energy boost.

“To be honest, shooting the ball, I think other than maybe a couple of those shots in the Eastern game, they felt pretty good. So, and, you know, with the rest, for sure, I think, you tend to play a little bit better and have a little bit more energy when you do get the rest.”

Ginebra will take on the Converge FiberXers next on Saturday, 7:30 p.m., at the Batangas City Coliseum.