MANILA, Philippines – Just when Meralco needed a wake-up jolt, Tony Bishop delivered an electrifying performance.

Bishop rediscovered his old form as the Bolts locked up their twice-to-beat quarterfinal bonus in the PBA Governors’ Cup with a 109-90 victory over Phoenix on Friday, March 11.

The American-born Panamanian import netted a game-high 35 points on top of 13 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals to help Meralco end a three-game skid and enter the playoffs on a high note.

“He played tonight like he played in our first four, five games. He was just exceptional,” said Bolts head coach Norman Black of Bishop.

“Defensively, he was good. Rebounding, he was good. And offensively, he made his shots from the perimeter, something that has really been missing in his game recently.”

Black admitted that he made adjustments specifically for Bishop, who struggled offensively during their dry spell.

Scoring at least 25 points on a 49.4% shooting in each of their first seven games – an impressive stretch that saw Meralco go 6-1 – Bishop averaged just 18.5 points on a 37% clip in back-to-back losses to Alaska and Magnolia.

Bishop erupted for 29 points in their next game against San Miguel, but that hardly mattered as the Bolts squandered a whopping 26-point lead en route to their third straight defeat.

Against the Fuel Masters, though, Bishop was in full control, shooting a conference-best 65% after knocking down 13 of his 20 field goals and 6 of his 10 three-point attempts.

“I think we made some adjustments to accommodate more his type of game,” Black said.

“Tony’s a legit 6’5, probably 6’5 1/2. But he’s not really a power player, so you really have to try to adjust your game plan based on his type of skills.”

“I thought we did a better job of that tonight and we’ll have to do the same thing going forward.” – Rappler.com