The Road Warriors made it rain, and set a few records, too.
“Nothing special. Swerte lang today.”
Don Trollano was smiling as he answered a question on how he approached Thursday’s game against the Terrafirma Dyip.
It was a question worth asking as the NLEX Road Warriors were clicking on all cylinders in their 142-125 win over Terrafirma. Leading the way was Trollano, who scored a career-high 44 points.
That 44-point output was the highest by any local in the ongoing PBA Governors' Cup and the all-time franchise best for NLEX. In the process, the swingman notched an insane 9-for-11 three-point shooting.
Even more impressive, he hit those 9 triples consecutively, missing only his first and last attempts, and thus setting a new all-time PBA record of most consecutive three-pointers in a game.
Trollano’s performance eclipsed the previous record of 8 consecutive triples without missing held by three shooters—the legendary sniper Allan Caidic, hot-shooting Renren Ritualo, and reliable marksman Von Pessumal.
If it’s indeed lady luck behind all this, then she certainly delivered not just for Trollano but also for the rest of the Road Warriors, who tied the all-time league record of 23 three-point shots made in a game by a team. They equaled the record previously set by the San Miguel Beermen and TNT Tropang Giga.
But aside from luck, perhaps a little extra motivation got NLEX the dub, especially as coach Frankie Lim has yet to forget November 18, 2022—when Terrafirma defeated NLEX in overtime, 124-114—effectively dashing their postseason hopes in the previous Commissioner’s Cup.
“If you remember last conference, we lost to Terrafirma and that destroyed our dreams of entering the quarterfinals. Sabi ko, ‘It’s payback time,’” said Lim.
Paid back, they did. And they scored a crucial win, too.
“We need this win in order to maintain our stand in the top four,” the coach said.
Entering the top four means gaining a twice-to-beat advantage in the quarterfinals. After their failure last conference, the former San Beda mentor knows all too well that they need to take every game they can win.
They have the mighty San Miguel Beermen as their next assignment on March 15. Expect the Road Warriors to come out fighting.