NLEX recovered from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter behind Robert Bolick and nabbed the win over Meralco in the PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup.
Robert Bolick dropped 16 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter as NLEX turned back Meralco, 99-96, in the PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao on Wednesday, March 6.
Bolick's heroics sparked the Road Warriors' turnaround, helping them erase an 75-85 deficit halfway in the frame and pushing them ahead at 96-91 on a pair of free throws with 26 ticks to go.
A non-call with under seven minutes left in the game seemed to ignite the fire in Bolick.
Bolick blew his top after what he thought was a non-call after receiving some contact on a drive.
NLEX coach Frankie Lim then entered the court, incurring him a technical foul. Chris Newsome hit the technical free throw for the Bolts which gave them a 10-point spread, 85-75, with 6:42 remaining.
It was Bolick’s show after that.
“Ginawa ko lang ang best ko. Salamat sa mga teammates kong ready. Team effort talaga," said Bolick.
With Bolick reeling off all of the Road Warriors' points in a 12-4 attack that allowed them to threaten at 87-89 with 4:07 to go, it was Robert Herndon who gave NLEX the upperhand, 90-89, with a triple at the 3:03 mark.
Meralco quickly retaliated behind Bong Quinto to snatch the lead anew at 91-90 with 2:41 remaining but Bolick and Enoch Valdez keyed an 8-0 counterattack that shoved the Road Warriors ahead at 98-91 with 26.3 seconds left in the clock.
The Bolts refused to back down, though, as they responded with five unanswered points of their own capped by a booming triple by Allein Maliksi that trimmed the gap to 98-96 with 21 ticks remaining.
Valdez came up big on defense for NLEX after that, stripping the ball away from Newsome in the inbound play before getting fouled by the same person in a layup attempt in transition.
He split his freebies then Newsome failed to convert from the three-point line, handing the Road Warriors their second win in three games.
Meralco, which was paced by Newsome’s 22-point, eight-rebound and four-assist outing, fell to a 1-2 tally.
The Scores:
NLEX 99 – Bolick 26, Nermal 12, Valdez 11, Herndon 9, Semerad 9, Marcelo 7, Miranda 7, Fajardo 6, Nieto 5, Amer 3, Pascual 2, Ular 2.
MERALCO 96– Newsome 22, Jose 14, Almazan 13, Maliksi 12, Hodge 10, Torres 9, Black 5, Quinto 5, Banchero 4, Rios 2, Mendoza 0, Caram 0, Pascual 0.
Quarterscores: 26-28, 51-43, 64-72, 99-96