NLEX opened its campaign with a victory while keeping Sedrick Barefield and Blackwater winless in two games in the PBA Season 49 Governors’ Cup.
NLEX gifted new coach Jong Uichico a 104-87 win over Blackwater in his first official game in his new capacity in the PBA Season 49 Governors’ Cup on Thursday, Aug. 22.
After a slow start, the Road Warriors built on a strong 28-15 second period on the way to chalking up the triumph for Uichico, whose nine titles is the fourth of all-time in the league.
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Robert Bolick posted 24 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds in a near-triple double performance he spiked with two steals to star for NLEX.
The Bossing dropped their second straight game.
After the break, NLEX came out even better and went on a 12-2 run capped by a Myke Henry three-point play for a 63-39 edge.
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The onslaught did not stop there.
The lead ballooned to 26 points after Enoch Valdez scored on Sedrick Barefield, No. 2 overall pick in the recent Rookie Draft, in transition, 79-53, with still two minutes and 40 seconds left in the third period.
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The Bossing did show some resistance in the fourth period, where they made things interesting after trimming the gap to within 83-94 on Justin Chua’s three-point play with still 2:19 left to play.
But the Road Warriors recovered right away, with Richie Rodger responding with a corner triple before another trey by Robbie Herndon and free throws from Bolick put the finishing touches to the victory.
“I think we defended pretty well naman especially in the first half. In the third quarter, medyo they had a run, but that’s just the way the game is. We should know how to break that kind of run. Na-break naman namin, but still, I think we weren’t able to break a run as soon as I wanted to,” said Uichico after the game.
While Bolick turned in a stellar outing, it was import Henry who topscored for NLEX with 31 points that went with 10 rebounds, three assists and a block.
Herndon and Rodger added 12 and 10 points, respectively, for the Road Warriors.
Meanwhile, Christian David paced Blackwater with 17 points and 10 rebounds, while Rosario had the same number of points.
Barefield followed up his 18-point outing in the opener with 16 points, five assists and three rebounds.
The Scores:
NLEX 104 – Henry 31, Bolick 24, Herndon 12, Rodger 10, Semerad 8, Valdez 6, Policarpio 5, Fajardo 5, Amer 3, Nieto 0, Pascual 0
BLACKWATER 87 – David 17, Rosario 17, Barefield 16, Tungcab 6, Kwekuteye 6, Ledo 6, Chua 5, Ponferrada 4, Hill 4, Montalbo 2, Casio 2, Guinto 2, Suerte 0
Quarterscores: 23-22, 51-37, 84-62, 104-87