MANILA, Philippines – In must-win games, Meralco cannot afford to lose Allein Maliksi.

Bolts coach Norman Black reminded Maliksi to be mindful of his actions as the veteran gunner got the boot in the first half of their 108-96 loss to Magnolia in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup on Sunday, November 27.

Maliksi incurred a technical foul in the opening quarter and eventually got thrown out with under eight minutes left in the second period after being slapped a flagrant foul penalty 1 for elbowing Hotshots guard Paul Lee in the face.

His technical foul also came against Lee.

“I didn’t quite understand that, with Allein tonight. I didn’t understand why he was so upset,” said Black.

“Basketball is a physical game, I didn’t really see anything dirty. He’s got to be a little bit more attentive to the importance of the game and his importance to the team.”

Maliksi has been a key contributor this conference, averaging 12.1 points on a 33% clip from three-point land to go with 3.3 rebounds, 1.2 steals, and 1.1 assists in 10 games.

Without Maliksi, Meralco squandered a 51-45 halftime lead and allowed Magnolia to explode for 47 points in the third quarter alone.

The loss snapped the Bolts’ three-game winning streak and dropped them to 4-6 for ninth place.

“He can’t put himself in that situation where he’s not going to be available to us,” said Black.

“I think everybody knows he’s our best outside shooter, he’s our best perimeter spacer. That did hurt us in the second half.”

Meralco faces the daunting task of reaching the quarterfinals as it needs to win its last two games of the elimination round against NLEX on November 30 and San Miguel on December 2 to get a crack at the playoffs. – Rappler.com