Akil Mitchell churned out 33 points and 22 rebounds in his debut for Meralco against Busan in the EASL on Wednesday, Nov. 13.
As pressure mounted, Akil Mitchell carefully placed his feet on the free throw line, took a deep breath then looked up to the rim at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City.
The new Meralco import drained his first gift shot. And though he missed the second one, it was enough for the Bolts to seal an 81-80 win over Busan KCC Egis in the 2024-25 East Asia Super League on Wednesday, Nov. 13.
But even before that, Mitchell was already making things happen for Meralco.
Akil Mitchell is on the floor for a little more than 36 minutes for Meralco in its EASL duel with Busan on Wednesday, Nov. 13. | Photo (c) RM Chua/One Sports
Down 67-75 with over six minutes left to play, Mitchell took matters into his own hands and torched the Korean team with 11 of the last 14 points for the Bolts.
Mitchell finished with 33 points and 22 rebounds.
[RELATED STORY: Akil Mitchell shines as Meralco nips Busan in EASL]
He completed two straight and-one plays within that stretch, the last one tying the ball game at 75-all with still 3:16 to go.
But the defending Korean Basketball League champion did not easily fold.
Heo Ung shot a trey and Leon Williams made a jumper to give Egis a 77-80 edge with 49.5 ticks remaining.
Bong Quinto retaliated with his own triple to knot the count with 30.9 to go before Mitchell wrapped things up from the foul line.
Bolts coach Luigi Trillo was pleased.
Trillo even likened the hardworking Mitchell to three-time PBA Best Import Allen Durham.
“I think the nice thing about bringing Akil is he’s a professional. He knows how to win. Just like our former import Allen Durham,” Trillo said.
DJ Kennedy struggled from the field, scoring 14 points on 5-for-18 shooting from the field. He also had eight rebounds, five assists and two steals.
Quinto, Anjo Caram and Ange Kouame chipped in eight points apiece.
[ALSO READ: San Miguel still adjusting to international play as it slips to 0-2 start in EASL]
Meanwhile, Deonte Burton fired 26 points for Busan which went for naught.
Heo and Lee Geunwhi added 14 points each.