KJ McDaniels came to haunt his former team as Meralco edged out the returning TNT, 97-91, to register its third consecutive victory in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup, Wednesday evening at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
Once the Tropang Giga’s import, the ex-NBA cager made life for his ex-ball club difficult as he finished with a game-high 26 points, 15 rebounds, four assists, and two blocks to help the Bolts improve to 4-5 in the team standings.
“The level of practices really improved since KJ got here. Our practices are pretty intense, everybody goes hard in practice, and it’s starting to show,” said coach Norman Black as his team’s yet to lose since the 29-year-old arrived.
Raymond Almazan was instrumental as well in the victory with 21 points and 11 rebounds, coming through most especially in the endgame to help his side emerge triumphant in a nip-and-tuck affair featuring MVP squads.
Moments after a split from the line, the 6-foot-8 center dealt the dagger through a jump hook to give Meralco a 98-55 lead with 31 seconds left, and the crew eventually completed the comeback from 11 down in the second canto.
“Raymond really stepped up, he did a great job for us getting a double-double, scored a lot of points around the basket. My import gets a lot of attention on the floor … sometimes they don’t even guard Raymond,” Black said.
Aaron Black had his own double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds, along with six assists, a steal, and a block. Bong Quinto had 13 points and six boards, while Chris Banchero chipped in 10 markers in the win.
Meralco now braces for its last three assignments, hoping to of course sweep all to strengthen its playoff hopes. It battles current league leaders Magnolia next on November 27, Sunday, 4:30 PM at the Philsports Arena.
Meanwhile, Cam Oliver had 25 points and 20 rebounds with five blocks to lead the up-and-down TNT, who fell to 4-5 to sit eighth in the team standings.
Mikey Williams supplied 20 points in his first game back from a team-imposed one-week suspension for disciplinary reasons. Jayson Castro had 19 points and seven assists while Poy Erram chipped in 10 markers and eight boards.
TNT will only have a few days of rest before battling Barangay Ginebra in a rivalry affair this Sunday, 6:45 PM, still at the Big Dome.
The Scores:
Meralco 97 – McDaniels 26, Almazan 21, Black 17, Quinto 13, Banchero 10, Maliksi 9, Pascual 1, Jose 0, Pasaol 0, Caram 0, Hodge 0.
TNT 91 – Oliver 25, M.Williams 20, Castro 19, Erram 10, Oftana 6, K.Williams 5, Pogoy 4, Khobuntin 2, Heruela 0, Ganuelas-Rosser 0.
Quarterscores: 21-23, 49-54, 73-74, 97-91.
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The second game of each PBA gameday is live-streamed on SMART Sports.
