Meralco struggled to contain Kyndall Dykes leading to an 82-90 defeat at the hands of Al Arabi to open the 2023 Doha International Basketball Championship on Wednesday at Al Gharafa Sports Club.
Dykes dropped 41 points on 13-of-25 shooting from the field to lead the home team to its first win.
Dykes took charge when it mattered the most for Al Arabi.
With their lead down to 63-56 late in the third canto, Dykes went berserk, scoring 12 straight points bridging the third and fourth quarters to give his side a 75-63 lead.
The Bolts could not recover from the flurry, falling in their first game.
Feron Hunt paced Meralco, who will take on Al Ahly next, with 23 points and nine rebounds.
Bong Quinto and Allein Maliksi added 16 and 15 points, respectively, while Aaron Black tallied 10 points and six assists.
Supporting Dykes was Jylan Washington with 24 points and 11 rebounds.
