Jois drops 43 points as Batang Pier halt Dyip

MANILA, Philippines -- Venky Jois finished with a 43-point double-double as he towed the NorthPort Batang Pier to a 108-103 win over the debuting Stephen Holt and the  Terrafirma Dyip in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Friday evening at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Jois led the charge for NorthPort, which erased a 10-point deficit in the third quarter as he pounded his way inside almost every possession.

The Batang Pier took a five-point lead, 97-92, with 5:51 remaining after a 3-pointer by rookie Fran Yu from way beyond the arc.

However, Terrafirma clawed its way back and took the lead, 98-97, with 4:25 left.

NorthPort countered with six straight points off of two layups by Vois and a dunk by Arvin Tolentino for the insurmountable 103-98 lead.

Free throws by Thomas de Thaey and Javi Gomez de Liano cut the lead to two, 103-101, with 51 seconds left.

A split from the line by Jois off the sixth foul of de Thaey gave NorthPort a 104-101 cushion.

Dyip guard Juami Tiongson, who was leading the team in scoring in the game, tried to hoist a trey.

But Brent Paraiso’s outstretched arms forced him to pass the ball out to an unsuspecting Holt, leading to the turnover.

Free throws by Tolentino struck the dagger to Terrafirma’s heart, 106-101.

While Holt made a pair of free throws to cut the lead to three, 106-103 with 14 ticks left, Yu split from the line.

He then stole the inbound pass by Terrafirma, sealing the win.

Following Jois in scoring for NorthPort was Tolentino, who finished with 16 points.

“We want to get this statement win because our team had a lot of changes in the lineup. We just want to win,” NorthPort head coach Bonnie Tan told reporters in Filipino after the game.

Holt, the No. 1 one pick of this year’s PBA Draft, struggled from the field.

He finished with 11 points off of two-of-nine field goal shooting. He missed all five of his attempts from beyond the arc.

Tiongson led Terrafirma with 21 points, while de Thaey had 20.