ARG - Ginobili lifts Quilmes past Penarol

MAR DEL PLATA (Liga Nacional) - Sebastian Ginobili, the brother of San Antonio Spurs guard Manu, scored the winning points with just seconds remaining as Quilmes edged Penarol in a top-of-the-table clash in the Liga Nacional on Friday.

Quilmes trailed by five points at the start of the final quarter but Ginobili sank the winning basket with just 3.9 left in the game to secure a crucial win for Quilmes, ending Penarol's five-match unbeaten run.

Ramzee Stanton had 18 points and seven rebounds and Pedro Calderon had 14 points and 10 rebounds for Quilmes, while Jason Osborne poured in 29 points for Penarol.

"I was calm, I found space and, luckily, I managed to settle the game," said Ginobili.

"Fortunately, we kept out nerve even when we were trailing. We have struggled in the closing stages of our recent matches but this time, it was different.

"The most important is that we ended a series of bad results against Penarol and I want to dedicate this win to our fans who have suffered in our recent matches against them."

Both teams have 26.5 points and sit at the top of the Liga Nacional standings, two ahead of Boca Juniors, who defeated Libertad 73-68.

Gimnasia (Comodoro Rivadavia) and Ben Hur kept touch with the top three as Gimnasia defeated Belgrano 84-74, while Ben Hur downed Ciclista Juninense 80-73.

In other games, Juventud Sionista downed Atenas 78-72, Central Entrerriano beat Deportivo Madryn 89-79, Estudiantes routed Obras Sanitarias 73-60 and Regatas cruised past Quimsa 98-86.

PA Sport