Hotshots thriving in survival mode

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ANTIPOLO CITY. — Magnolia rookie playmaker Jerom Lastimosa rose for a tough but highlight-worthy reverse layup off Eastern big man Yuet Yeung Pok Sunday night.

Bringing their A-Game in a duel they cannot afford to lose, the Hotshots manhandled Eastern 107-78 for their fifth win and stayed alive in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Ynares Center here.

Lastimosa’s nifty basket that drew ahhs and oohs from the sparse crowd pushed Magnolia’s edge to 74-53 with 1:04 left in the third quarter.

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Hotshots coach Chito Victolero pointed to his charges’ sense of urgency as one of the keys to their win.

“The word is survival. We tried to approach this game with a sense of urgency, with the proper mindset and that’s our call, defense. When our backs are against the wall, we’re in the do-or-die situation, we go to our strength which is our defense,” Victolero said. “So, we keep on doing that. We keep on practicing everything–we want to clean up everything doon sa mga mistakes namin, sa mga kulang namin.

“The long break, iyong 10 days break namin magandang nangyari para sa amin iyon because we cleaned up everything at lahat nung mga kulang namin,” he added.

Import Ricardo Ratliffe notched game-highs of 25 points and 16 rebounds, to go with seven assists for Magnolia while Lastimosa chipped in 20 markers, five boards, and four dimes.

Zavier Lucero, Ian Sangalang, and Mark Barroca also had 20, 14, and 11 points, respectively as the Hotshots improved to 5-6 in a tie with defending champion San Miguel Beer and NLEX for the eighth and final quarterfinals slot.

The foreign guest side slipped to 7-4.

Magnolia came off with guns blazing and took a 50-31 spread at the half that it hiked to as much as 29 (107-78) on a Lastimosa three-pointer, with only 36 ticks to go.

Reinforcement Chris McLaughlin paced Eastern with 20 points and 10 caroms while Glen Yang and Kobey Lam combined for 27.

Now, the burning question: How long can the Hotshots stay alive?

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