PBA ball club Meralco Bolts bowed to the wily SK Knights of South Korea, 87-91, to finish fourth in the 2018 FIBA Asia Champions Cup, Tuesday evening at the Stadium 29 in Nonthaburi, Thailand.
This has been the Philippines’ best finish in seven years, or since Smart Gilas Pilipinas finished also fourth in the 2011 edition of the Asian club tilt that was held at the Philsports Arena.
The Bolts finished the six-day showpiece with a 1-4 record.
Twenty-one year old import Diamond Stone had his best game for Meralco, as he had 32 points on 13-of-21 shooting alongside 13 rebounds. Allen Durham provided 21 points, nine boards, and five assists.
The Bolts actually had a good seven-point lead early in the second quarter, but the Knights unleashed a furious 19-4 scoring blitz to head into the halftime break with a 46-38 advantage.
SK led by 11 in the third, but thanks to KG Cañaleta’s sniping from beyond the arc – where he made four straight triples – Meralco came back to life and eventually led by four, 63-59, late in the frame.
But the South Korean ball club has a knack of heating up from the field. They shot the lights out in the early-goings of the final period en route to a favorable 73-65 lead with 7:59 on the clock.
From there, the Bolts had to play catch-up ball. They still had a chance when they closed within three, 87-90, with 13.8 ticks left, but the Knights split their shots from the foul line two seconds later.
Durham’s missed triple signalled the victory for SK and the fourth-place finish for the Bolts.
Cañaleta produced 15 points built on five triples off the bench, while floor general Baser Amer had 12 markers – which he all got in the opening quarter alone – along with five rebounds for Meralco.
DaJuan Summers, who got fouled out with 3:32 left to play, led the Knights with 26 points, seven caroms, and four dimes.
The Scores:
Meralco 87 – Stone 32, Durham 21, Canaleta 15, Amer 12, Lanete 3, Caram 2, Tolomia 2, Atkins 0, Ballesteros 0, Hugnatan 0, Jamito 0, Salva 0.
SK 91 – Summers 26, An 17, M. Kim 14, W. Choi 13, Lee 11, B. Choi 8, G. Kim 2, Byun 0, Jung 0, S. Kim 0, Ryu 0.
Quarterscores: 25-27, 38-46, 63-62, 87-91.
