Mike Harris and Paul Lee delivered the clutch plays for Magnolia to escape the double-digit gap and lead the scoreboard in the last four minutes of the last quarter.

With 32 ticks remaining, Matt Nieto was fouled by Jio Jalalon from beyond the three-point line, giving the Road Warriors the opportunity to retake the lead over the Hotshots, 110-109.

However, he missed all his three free throw shots to his disappointment and gave Harris the chance to widen the gap more with a late layup to end the series with a 112-109 advantage.

“We had a bad start, but the second group saved us today. The bench saved us today. I credit to them and they gave us the energy,” said Magnolia head coach Chito Victolero.

“Medyo masama start namin. Masama depensa namin. Credit to the players kasi they committed to the system. Inembrace nila ginagawa namin,” he added.

This is Magnolia’s fifth straight win, while NLEX suffered their third straight defeat after their 4-0 start in the conference.

The scores:

Magnolia 112 – Harris 31, Lee 21, Sangalang 14, Barroca 11, Jalalon 9, Wong 8, Dionisio 7, Corpuz 6, Ahanmisi 5, Reavis 0.

NLEX 109 – McDaniels 35, Alas 22, Trollano 18, Cruz 12, Quinahan 8, Nieto 7, Soyud 5, Porter 2, Rosales 0, Paniamogan 0, Varilla 0, Ighalo 0.

Quarters: 22-25; 54-56; 77-88; 112-109.