MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The Meralco Bolts pulled away towards the end to defeat the gritty NLEX Road Warriors, 104-97, and enter the 2016 PBA Commissioner's Cup semifinals on Monday, April 18 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Five players finished in double figures for the Bolts with Reynel Hugnatan leading the way as he poured 10 of his 20 points in the final frame to go with 7 rebounds off the bench.
"It was a hard-fought game. We had a very difficult time with (NLEX’s) post defense again," said head coach Norman Black.
"I can’t really pinpoint 1 player tonight who really stood out. I thought every one played well tonight. It was a team effort."
Cliff Hodge was right behind him with 19 points pn 6-of-13 field goals along with 9 rebounds. Jared Dillinger missed all 6 of his attempts from downtown but still tallied 18 markers with 4 boards and 3 dimes, while Chris Newsome was perfect from the line (7-of-7) for his 15 points on top of 8 rebounds and 4 assists.
Import Arinze Onuaku struggled with double teams and took only 10 shots – of which he made 6 – to finish with 13 points and 11 rebounds. He also had just 3 free throw attempts.
Meanwhile, prolific import Al Thornton carried the scoring load once again for the now eliminated NLEX with 38 points, 14 rebounds and 3 assists. He was likewise aggressive, going 10-for-13 from the stripe.
Garvo Lanete was the only other Road Warrior in double figures as he tied his career-high 21 points, hitting 4 triples in 26 minutes.
NLEX was out-rebounded by 50-37 and suffered much damage on the offensive glass as Meralco collared 16 offensive rebounds for 16 second chance points.
The Road Warriors had a chance to extend the quarterfinals series and topple the second-seed, twice-to-beat Bolts as they led by as much as 9 points in the fourth.
But Newsome tied the game on an and-one play with under 4 minutes left and Hodge completed another 3-point play with over a minute remaining to give Meralco some cushion, 96-92.
NLEX twice came within two points inside the final minute but each time Meralco responded with key baskets to stretch the lead once more.
Meralco, which is having a much better conference compared to its Philippine Cup nightmare, will face in a best-of-5 semifinals the winner of the best-of-3 series between Alaska and defending champion TNT. – Rappler.com