The Magnolia Hotshots looked to have regained their old form, tearing apart the Columbian Dyip, 126-101, to collect their second straight win in the 2018 Commissioner’s Cup, Wednesday night at SMART Araneta Coliseum.
The Hotshots have improved to 2-1, while the Dyip dropped to 3-3.
“We have to respect this Columbian Dyip dahil maganda tinatakbo nila. It’s a battle of our defense against their offense. Buti na lang maganda mindset ng mga bata right from the start,” said Magnolia head coach Chito Victoleto.
Magnolia deployed a balanced attack, with outgoing reinforcement Vernon Macklin leading the pack with 19 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the floor, along with eight rebounds and a block, in nearly 29 minutes of playing time.
Macklin, who is set to fly to China after Friday for greener pastures, scored 11 of his points in the first quarter alone to help the Hotshots end the frame with a 37-18 lead — the lead that set up the whitewashing the rest of the way.
“Right before the start alam namin na aalis siya. He will play for our first four games para lang at least we have a time to find another replacement,” admitted Victolero of Macklin, the former Barangay Ginebra San Miguel import “Maganda schedule namin. We have a two-week break so siguro makakahanap kami before our game on June 2.”
The Hotshots’ lead ballooned to as huge as 38, 111-73, after Jio Jalalon’s bucket with 8:17 to go in the fourth quarter.
Ian Sangalang supplied 18 points for Magnolia. Paul Lee and Mark Barroca each produced 17 markers, combining for 14 of the team’s 28 assists. Aldrech Ramos scored 12, while Jalalon had 11 points and nine rebounds.
John Fields led Columbian with 22 points and 19 boards along with four blocks. Jerramy King and Rashawn McCarthy were his only support with 19 and 12 markers, respectively, on a combined 10-of-22 shooting.
Magnolia will look to extend their streak to three against the Meralco Bolts on Friday, May 18, 7:00 PM, still at the Big Dome, while Columbian will look to return to the win column versus the TNT Katropa on June 1, Friday, at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
The Scores:
Magnolia 126 — Macklin 19, Sangalang 18, Barroca 17, Lee 17, Ramos 12, Jalalon 11, Dela Rosa 8, Abundo 7, Pascual 6, Herndon 5, Brondial 2, Mendoza 2, Simon 2, Gamalinda 0, Reavis 0.
Columbian 101 — Fields 22, King 19, McCarthy 12, Khobuntin 9, Tubid 9, Corpuz 8, Celda 7, Cabrera 6, Lastimosa 5, Cahilig 4, Ababou 0, Escoto 0, Gabriel 0, Yee 0.
Quarterscores: 37-18, 72-43, 97-71, 126-101.
