MANILA, Philippines – It has been just five games since William Navarro joined the PBA, but he already owns one of the best statlines the league has seen in recent years.

Navarro earned the PBA Press Corps Player of the Week honors for the period of November 16 to 20 after putting up import-like numbers as NorthPort extended its hot run to bolster its playoff bid.

The former Ateneo standout delivered career-highs of 29 points, 17 rebounds, and 9 assists on top of 1 steal and 1 block in a 112-97 victory over Converge that saw the Batang Pier halt the FiberXers’ seven-game win streak.

Coming off a nip-and-tuck first half that ended with NorthPort holding a slim 52-49 lead, Navarro unloaded 16 points in the third quarter as the Batang Pier coasted the rest of the way en route to their third straight win.

He shot a perfect 6-of-6 from the field, draining both of his three-pointers, in the third period.

Thanks to that superb performance, NorthPort improved to 6-5 for fifth place as it revived its playoff campaign after going on a three-game skid in the middle of the conference.

Navarro stamped his mark all over that winning streak, averaging 19.3 points, 12.3 rebounds, 5.7 assists, and 1 steal during that stretch.

The Batang Pier are a win away from clinching a quarterfinals berth, with NorthPort needing to beat Barangay Ginebra in its final elimination-round game on November 27 at the PhilSports Arena.

Navarro became the third Batang Pier player to win Player of the Week this conference after teammates Arvin Tolentino and Robert Bolick achieved the feat earlier in the tournament.

He bested Meralco big man Raymond Almazan and Terrafirma guard Juami Tiongson for the weekly honor being handed out by the group regularly covering the PBA beat. – Rappler.com