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Ginebra Gin Kings’ Ralph Cu in the PBA Philippine Cup. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines—The return of Scottie Thompson for Ginebra in the PBA Philippine Cup was anticipated by the Gin King faithful but it was another guard who shone in the spotlight at Philsports Arena on Saturday.

Ralph Cu showed up big for the Gin Kings, who improved to 4-3 in the All-Filipino conference, with a conference-high 14 points.

The rookie sensation’s stellar outing caught the attention of a returning Thompson, who only finished with four points but shared the ball in succession with eight assists and seven rebounds.

READ: PBA: Ralph Cu, unheralded rookie, shows worth for Ginebra

“Ralph really brings something different. He’s a very smart player, he runs through the system. He’s a big thing for us,” said Thompson in Filipino after their 105-86 win over Blackwater.

“Hopefully, his growth continues. Us, as vets, will guide him, especially me because I make the calls on the court.”

Despite being a runaway game for the Gin Kings, things weren’t exactly all-rosy for Cu and his scoring outing.

READ: After Gilas ‘stint,’ Ralph Cu and Donald Gumaru boost Ginebra options

In the first half, the La Salle product barely took a crack at the basket which was immediately noticed by Thompson.

“I told him earlier when I talked to him that I see his hard work in practice every day. In the first quarter, he was hesitating to shoot so I told him, ‘in the second half, since you’re practicing those shots and you do it every day, keep shooting.’ After that, I just kept looking for him.”

The Gilas Pilipinas guard’s word seemingly lit a fire under Cu as he exploded in the third quarter to help the Gin Kings rout the Bossing even more.

Cu sank four huge triples in the penultimate period alone, helping the Gin Kings break their two-game losing slump in the process.

Cu and Ginebra look to keep their momentum going on Sunday when they face Commissioner’s Cup quarterfinals foe Northport at Ninoy Aquino Stadium.