PBA |
By Jason Espiritu
QUEZON CITY--When Blackwater owner
Dioceldo Sy knew they were going to get the no.1 overall pick from the Gilas
special draft, he already insisted that Mac Belo will be their pick and become
their long-awaited franchise type player.
He couldn’t be any more wrong.
After a solid debut last
Wednesday versus Phoenix, Belo shone anew on Sunday night against Meralco in an 86-84 win at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, posting a
career-high 25 points in his second game in the PBA.
More importantly, he did much of his damage in the second half and crucial winding
moments of the game.
Meralco was in control much of the
game before Belo erupted for a triple on top of the key to tie the game at
84-all with 1:40 left in the game. That
helped set up veteran Denok Miranda’s game-winning layup with 3.8
seconds remaining.
The Bolts had a 27-22 lead in the first canto led by rookie Jonathan Grey’s seven quick points and a booming
trey to end the quarter.
The second frame saw a see-saw
battle from both teams exchanging leads from a very entertaining fast-paced
action. The Bolts held on to 41-39 lead at the half.
Mac Belo only scored four point in
the first half before exploding for nine points in the third quarter and
12 points in the final canto to help put Blackwater on top of the standings
after a week of play. Their 2-0 record marks their best start in their franchise
history.
Cliff Hodge led the charge for
the Bolts with a near rare triple-double feat scoring 14 points, grabbing nine rebounds, and dishing eight assists. He was backed up by last year’s Rookie of the Year
Chris Newsome and impressive rookie Grey with 11 points each.
Box Scores:
Blackwater 86-Belo 25, Pascual
13, Miranda 11, Dela Cruz 8, Sena 6, Pinto 5, Aguilar 5, Cervantes 5, Forrester
3, Ababou 3, Gamalinda 2, Banal 0, Buenafe 0
Meralco 84 - Hodge 14, Grey 11,
Newsome 11, Al-Hussaini 9, Amer 8, Daquioag 6, Hugnatan 6, Yeo 5, Chua 4,
Faundo 4, Nabong 4, Dillinger 2
Quarterscores: 22-27, 39-41, 68-67, 86-84
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