By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The Magnolia Hotshots Pambansang Manok made sure they’ll double their happiness this Christmas season after stomping the Barangay Ginebra squad, 117-94, in the highly-anticipated Manila Clasico matchup on December 25, 2021.
It was also a sweet payback for Magnolia after failing to win their last three holiday meeting showdowns against Ginebra.
Magnolia import Mike Harris led the way in the dominating victory after finishing the ball game with 29 points, 15 rebounds, and five assists.
Harris was immediately on the loose for Magnolia as he opened up the game’s scoring column with his signature mid-range jumper at the top of the key.
The super import wasn’t done dealing damage on the offensive end as he inflicted 13 first-quarter points out of Magnolia’s 29 scored.
From there, the Hotshots didn’t look back and built a double-digit lead that ballooned to as much as 31 points.
Magnolia’s impressive 43 % shooting from the three-point field also helped them keep their huge lead, sinking 13 of their 30 attempts while also draining 14 of their 18 shots from the charity stripe.
It was indeed a cold Christmas for Ginebra after missing their first 13 shots from downtown and ended up shooting just 27%, converting just six of their 22 total attempts from the three-point area.
Magnolia’s collective effort also resulted in the huge win as six Hotshots players scored in double-figures led by Harris’ 29, Paul Lee with 20, Calvin Abueva with 13, Jio Jalalon’s 12 points, Mark Barroca with 11 points, and Jerrick Ahanmisi contributing 10 points.
