On Thursday night at the Philsports Arena in Pasig, Jamaal Franklin made a nice impression in his PBA debut as he led Converge past Terrafirma in a high scoring contest, 130-115, and scored a pair of goals in the 2023 PBA Governors’ Cup.

The former NBA player who replaced Ethan Rusbatch had a complete game with 42 points, 11 rebounds, 8 assists, a steal, and a block to help the FiberXers take the lead early in the team standings.

The star of their 29-point thrashing of NorthPort the previous time out, Maverick Ahanmisi, paced the locals with 16 points and nine rebounds.

The frontcourt duo of Jeron Teng and Justin Arana continued to play well as well, finishing with equal totals of 15 points and six rebounds.

With less than four minutes remaining in the third quarter, Converge launched a thunderous 26-7 rally to erase a seven-point deficit and take the lead 94-82. The two worked together with Franklin to help turn the game around.

Abu Tratter scored 10 points, grabbed 9 rebounds, and added a steal and a block to his total. All but two of the 12 players used in the victory scored at least three points, including Alec Stockton’s 10 goals.

When Converge (2-0) plays the newly minted Magnolia at 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, it will now turn its attention to the big game at the Antipolo Ynares Center.

Jordan Williams, the Dyip’s player of the game, finished with a game-high 46 points and six rebounds in the loss.

Juami Tiongson scored 18 points; Alex Cabagnot added 11 points and six assists, and Aldrech Ramos and newly acquired Kevin Ferrer both chipped in with 10.

The defeat of Terrafirma also derailed Ed Daquioag’s comeback after a seven-month absence owing to a terrifying ankle injury sustained during the Philippine Cup.

Next up for the Dyip is a 4:30 p.m. match against Meralco at Antipolo.

The Scores

Converge 130 – Franklin 42, Ahanmisi 16, Arana 15, Teng 15, Stockton 10, Browne 9, Racal 6, Balanza 4, Ambohot 0, Ebona 0, Tolomia 0, Murrell 3, Tratter 3.

Terrafirma 115 – Williams 46, Tiongson 18, Cabagnot 11, Ferrer 10, Ramos 10, Camcon 7, Gomez de Liano 2, Daquioag 0, Calvo 0, Cahilig 3, Gabayni 3, Mina 3.

Quarter scores: 36-33, 68-71, 100-92, 130-115