Star soars to 4-0 with lopsided win over Mahindra

MANILA, Philippines – Import Tony Mitchell came bursting down the lane when he received the timely pass from guard Jio Jalalon and the import threw down an emphatic windmill dunk. 

It was early in the third quarter, and it seemed the game had already been decided.

The Star Hotshots went on to a lopsided victory over the hapless Mahindra Floodbuster, 97-83, to extend their unbeaten streak to 4 games in the 2017 PBA Commissioner’s Cup on Wednesday, April 5 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

TONY MITCHELL WITH THE WINDMILL SLAMMMM! Candidate for best play of the season! #WeArePBA pic.twitter.com/YIgAjRpBWZ

— PBA (@pbaconnect) April 5, 2017

Apart from his highlight-reel dunk, Mitchell imposed his dominance with a team-high 19 points on top of 14 rebounds and a whopping 6 blocks.

Jalalon and Aldrech Ramos added 14 and 12 points, respectively, for the Hotshots, who are now tied in first place with the similarly undefeated Alaska Aces.

Veteran guards PJ Simon, Paul Lee, and Mark Barroca all pitched in 11 points apiece as Star pulled away from Mahindra in the second quarter and never relented, leading by as many as 21 points.

“We played very good defense,” head coach Chito Victolero said. “We learned a lot from our mistakes last game and now we played 48 minutes of Star Hotshots basketball.”

Star spoiled the debut of Mahindra’s new import Keith Wright, who was brought in as a definitive inside presence. Though they kept original reinforcement James White in Manila and he watched the game from courtside wearing street clothes.

Wright debuted with 17 points, 14 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 blocks, while Alex Mallari posted a game-high 24 points on 11-of-18 shooting. Mallari also added 6 rebounds and two steals.

The Floodbuster sank to a 1-4 record despite the import adjustment.

Scores:

Star (97): Mitchell 19, Jalalon 14, Ramos 12, Simon 11, Lee 11, Barroca 11, Maliksi 9, Sangalang 4, Reavis 4, Brondial 2, Dela Rosa 0, Mendoza 0. 

Mahindra (83): Mallari 24, Wright 17, Paniamogan 9, Celda 9, Ballesteros 7, David 5, Revilla 4, Elorde 3, Galanza 3, Guevarra 2, Caperal 0, Deutchman 0, Yee 0, Salva 0. 

Quarter scores: 22-18, 43-30, 70-53, 97-83.

– Rappler.com