NLEX dealt the depleted Magnolia an 87-74 beating for its fourth win in a row in the PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup, Saturday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
The Road Warriors jumped to a 26-10 start, and that set the tone for the wire-to-wire win as they went on to become one of the conference’s hottest teams after beating a Hotshots side that badly missed the services of Calvin Abueva.
The ‘Beast’ served a one-game suspension imposed by the Commissioner’s Office after flashing the middle finger to a fan early in their game versus Barangay Ginebra last Sunday, an offense that also got him fined Php 20,000.
“Malaking bagay ‘yun,” said head coach Frankie Lim as they beat a team that also didn’t have Rome Dela Rosa and Aris Dionisio due to ankle injuries.
It’s an absence that NLEX surely took advantage of on its way to snatching the provisional second place of the standings with a 5-1 record.
Robert Bolick led the way with 26 points and nine assists, with Tony Semerad backing him up with 22 points on a 5-of-9 clip from beyond the arc alongside 10 rebounds as he himself took advantage of Abueva’s absence.
“We were out for like 18 days and maganda naman ‘yung pacing namin …I thought ‘yung pacing namin sa players was crucial,” Lim said.
Russel Escoto and Ian Sangalang, meanwhile, finished with 13 points apiece to lead Magnolia, which absorbed its second loss in a row after a triumphant conference debut against Converge last March 15.
Mark Barroca was the only other double-digit scorer for the Hotshots with 10 as he fought through a sprained right wrist, which he got in the Easter Clasico.
The Scores:
NLEX 87 – Bolick 26, Semerad 22, Herndon 9, Miranda 6, Amer 6, Fajardo 6, Nieto 6, Pascual 3, Nermal 2, Rodger 0, Marcelo 1, Anthony 0, Valdez 0.
Magnolia 74 – Escoto 13, Sangalang 13, Barroca 10, Laput 8, Jalalon 6, Corpuz 5, Lee 5, Mendoza 5, Ahanmisi 4, Eriobu 3, Reavis 0, Murrell 0.
Quarterscores: 26-12, 37-27, 67-47, 87-74
