Chris Banchero and Chris Newsome closed it out as Meralco put an end to the six-game winning streak of NLEX by way of a 108-92 victory in the PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup, Sunday night at the Philsports Arena in Pasig.
The Bolts’ main man finished with 21 points, while the veteran playmaker delivered 16 alongside five rebounds and six assists as the two stars knocked down crucial triples inside the game’s final 3:18 to power the pullaway.
Banchero sparked the strong windup with a deep one to make it a 14-point gap, before Newsome nailed his own to make it a 106-90 count with 1:20 left to play, all but sealing the win that kept their quarterfinal bid very much alive.
They’ve now netted their second win in a row — the team’s first back-to-back wins since a 2-0 start to the tilt — and will look to finish their eliminations strongly against Ginebra (5-2) on Friday, May 30, at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
(C) PBA Images
“We’re trying to make sure we’re in the quarters,” said Coach Luigi Trillo. “‘Yung susunod sa amin [sa standings] ‘yung Phoenix; I think they have four more games. We really needed this one to put them on their heels.
“Alam natin ‘yung Ginebra, malakas. It’s just nice to get back-to-back victories. I think both of those last two games were hard-earned. The guys are cleaning up a lot of mistakes,” added the champion bench tactician.
The character win preserved also the stellar night of CJ Cansino, who poured all of his 20 points in the second half. The rookie guard went a perfect 9-for-9 from the free throw line and shot 57.1-percent from the floor, including a four.
Bong Quinto came through with 18 points in the victory that gave Cliff Hodge a successful return after serving a one-game suspension against Blackwater the last time out for his dangerous foul on Zavier Lucero in their loss to Magnolia.
The veteran big man was solid in his comeback, submitting a full line as he finished with 12 points, five rebounds, four assists, a steal, and a block.
“Cliff was solid. He was +23 in the plus-minus; 12 points, four assists, five rebounds. He’s the backbone of our defense. But with him being out in that game, it was a dose of humble pie sa kanya,” Trillo offered.
(C) PBA Images
Robert Bolick, meanwhile, led the Road Warriors with 22 points, four rebounds, and six assists in the loss, which enabled San Miguel to gain a share of the second spot in the standings as they now sport similar 6-2 records.
The Beermen, even with only 10 players, dealt Blackwater a harsh 115-78 beatdown earlier in the night to collect their third consecutive win.
JB Bahio and Kevin Alas made 14 points apiece. Javee Mocon made 12 points and seven rebounds while Dominick Fajardo added 11 although he left the game prematurely after sustaining a charley horse two minutes into the fourth.
NLEX will have a week to regroup before facing the Fuel Masters (2-5) next Sunday, June 1, at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
The Scores:
Meralco 108 – Newsome 21, Cansino 20, Quinto 18, Banchero 16, Hodge 12, Black 8, Pasaol 7, Almazan 4, Jose 2, Caram 0, Bates 0.
NLEX 92 – Bolick 22, Bahio 14, Alas 14, Mocon 12, Fajardo 11, Ramirez 6, Nieto 5, Amer 3, Torres 3, Semerad 2, Valdez 0, Herndon 0.
Quarterscores: 21-18, 45-47, 77-70, 108-92.
