SUMMARY
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MANILA, Philippines – The Meralco Bolts kicked off their 2021 PBA Governors’ Cup campaign on the right foot as they routed the hapless Blackwater Bossing, 98-77, at the Araneta Coliseum on Thursday, December 16.
As the Bolts wrapped up their late entry into the new conference, the Bossing, meanwhile, absorbed their third defeat, and extended their infamous league-record losing streak to 22 straight games dating back to the 2020 Philippine Cup bubble.
Meralco import Tony Bishop, who came in as a late replacement for former NBA player Shabazz Muhammad, made a great first impression as he tallied a 28-point, 13-rebound double-double with 3 blocks, 2 assists, and 2 steals to boot.
Nard Pinto led the locals with 18 points, 7 dimes, 3 boards, and 2 steals in just 23 minutes off the bench, while Chris Newsome added 11 markers and 4 rebounds.
After a back-and-forth opening quarter resulting in a 16-all tie, the Bolts created separation early in the second period with a 12-2 run, capped by a Newsome triple at the 5:45 mark to turn a 27-24 lead to a 39-26 gap.
As is the case with a majority of the games in their lengthy skid, the Bossing failed to regroup in the second half as they went down by as many as 24 points, 98-71, off an Alvin Pasaol three in the waning minutes of the final frame.
“It’s exactly what he hoped for, and what we wanted,” said Meralco head coach Norman Black of the dominant debut.
“We wanted to get off to a great start in this conference, and try to catch up with the teams that already played a lot of games, because this is our first game.”
Newly-acquired guard Rashawn McCarthy paced the loss with 19 points, albeit on 22 shots, while import Jaylen Bond added just 18 markers on 9-of-17 shooting, with 15 rebounds and 2 steals.
Meralco will try to start a winning streak some time next week, while Blackwater looks for a monumental upset against the struggling, but ever-loaded San Miguel Beermen on Saturday, December 18, 5:30 pm.
The Scores
Meralco 98 – Bishop 28, Pinto 18, Newsome 11, Almazan 10, Pasaol 6, Quinto 5, Belo 5, Maliksi 5, Hodge 4, Black 4, Jamito 2, Johnson 0, Baclao 0.
Blackwater 77 – McCarthy 19, Bond 18, Ebona 9, McAloney 9, Daquioag 8, Chauca 4, Desiderio 3, Baloria 3, Escoto 2, Amer 2, Washington 0, Gabriel 0.
Quarters: 16-16, 48-36, 75-54, 98-77.
– Rappler.com
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