Mike Harris' 31 points and 24 rebounds and Simon Enciso's key 3-point shooting lifted the Alaska Aces to a 104-102 victory over the Meralco Bolts in Game 3 Thursday at the Cuneta Astrodome.
The Aces take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five Governors' Cup semifinals series and are looking to return to the finals for the first time since the 2016 Commissioner's Cup. The Aces can clinch the series in Game 4 on Saturday.
Meralco import Allen Durham missed two opportunities to tie the game with seconds remaining and Anjo Caram missed one last-gasp heave.
Enciso scored nine of his 17 points in the final four minutes of the game, including a 3-pointer that gave the Aces a 95-92 lead with 2:31 remaining.
Harris scored Alaska's last nine points of the game to seal the win.
Meralco led by as many as 11 points early in the third period but Alaska rallied, setting up a tight fourth quarter.
"That was a huge game," Alaska coach Alex Compton said. "I don't know what the TV ratings are but I hope people watched that game because that was an excellent basketball game played by both teams. That's one of those games nobody deserved to lose."
Durham paced the Bolts with 37 points, 13 rebounds, eight assists, and two steals.
THE SCORES
Alaska 104 - Harris 31, Enciso 17, Banchero 17, Baclao 11, Manuel 8, Casio 7, Thoss 6, Cruz 4, Racal 3, Exciminiano 0, Potts 0.
Meralco 102 - Durham 37, Hugnatan 19, Newsome 18, Amer 11, Caram 4, Faundo 4, Salva 3, Dillinger 3, Lanete 3, Canaleta 0, Tolomia 0.
Quarterscores: 25-22, 47-53, 75-74, 104-102.
EXTRA DRIBBLES
-- Durham was efficient in his first 20 minutes of play, scoring 18 points on a perfect 6-of-6 shooting from the field to go with eight rebounds, six assists, and two steals without committing a single turnover.
-- Mike Harris was 1-of-10 from the three-point area in the last two games. But he made up for the shooting slump by being aggressive in attacking the basket.
NEXT GAME
Game 4 is on Saturday, 6:30 p.m. at the Cuneta Astrodome.