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| Sedrick Barefield caught fire in Davao City. PBA Images (file photo) |
MANILA—Blackwater and NLEX posted contrasting wins to start their Kadayawan Invitational Basketball Tournament campaign on a high note on Thursday night at the USEP Gym in Davao City.
The Bossing were the first to notch a victory by spoiling the preseason debut of Willie Wilson as the new Phoenix Fuel Masters head coach with a 94-81 rout.
Sedrick Barefield, a frontrunner for the last PBA season's Rookie of the Year award, showed that he is poised for a blockbuster second year in the pro league as he erupted for 28 points behind six threes.
Half of those long bombs came at a crucial juncture in the third quarter where Barefield personally went on a 9-2 run to help Blackwater pull away.
He also tallied three rebounds, four assists, and one steal in the win.
On the other hand, the Road Warriors needed to escape a late rally by the Converge FiberXers for a 95-88 win.
NLEX looked to be on pace for a blowout after opening an 80-63 lead early in the fourth quarter, but Converge went on a 20-3 run afterward to tie the game up, 83-all, with 5:26 left.
After a back-and-forth sequence later on, Richie Rodgers buried a clutch three with 1:31 left that sparked the Road Warriors' game-ending 7-0 blast.
Robert Bolick led NLEX with 22 points, one rebound, three assists, and two steals.
The Fuel Masters and FiberXers will clash on Friday night to decide who among them will remain in contention for the championship in the preseason tournament, which for the second straight year features PBA teams.
The Bossing and Road Warriors will face off on Friday night to determine who among them will stay undefeated.
