Laure and Espinosa showed grace under pressure with seven points each in the final quarter as the Blades blew a big 23-point lead but survived the scare to seize a 1-0 lead in their best-of-five title series.
"Napansin ko sa fourth quarter na hindi na gumagalaw ’yung mga veteran teammates ko kaya nag-step up na ako nung bandang huli," said Laure, who knocked in five of his 23 points in the final three minutes of the contest.
Romel Adducul, Alex Compton and Peter Martin, members of the 1999 titlist Manila Metrostars, started out hot and put LBC Batangas comfortably on top, 54-31, at the start of the third period. But they turned cold in the final two quarters that set the stage for the scrambling finish.
John Ferriol’s one-handed fallaway shot capped a string of runs that put the Slashers back in the game, actually on top as they wrested an 80-76 lead. But Laure stepped up to score five of the Blades’ next seven points, foiling the three-time Southern Conference champions’ rally.
A basket each by Ferriols, the league’s MVP in 1998, and Johnedel Cardel against Adducul’s inside stab put Negros within, 84-85. But Espinosa secured the win for the Blades by sinking two pressure-packed charities.
Negros lived and died with Ferriols, who missed three of his last four attempts, including one in the closing seconds when he opted to go for a layup instead of passing to an open teammate.
"We’re not happy with the win because we just wavered in the third and fourth quarters," said LBC Batangas coach Nash Racela. "Luckily for us, we regained composure down the stretch."
Racela said he expects Negros to come back strong when they collide again in Game 2 tomorrow at the Mail and More Sports Complex in San Andres, Manila, former home of the Metrostars.
Games Three and Four will be played at the University of St. La Salle gym in Bacolod City on Sunday, while a deciding Game 5, if necessary, will be held at the La Salle Centrum in Lipa.