BLACKWATER finally broke through the win column of the PBA Philippine Cup after a 120-98 stunner over Northport on Friday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Bossing went to their bench in exploding for 40 third-quarter points that allowed them to pull away against a sluggish Batang Pier side after a closely-fought first half.
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Christian David and Sedrick Barefield, the No. 2 picks in the last two drafts, BJ Andrade, and Richard Escoto made that crucial separation possible before the team cruised to its first win after kicking off its conference with back-to-back losses.
Barefield topscored with 20 points, David finished with 19, guard RK Ilagan had 17, Escoto added 15, and Andrade finished with 14 in his best game yet since being acquired by Blackwater in a trade with Converge for Rey Suerte.
Despite welcoming back top gunner Arvin Tolentino, the Batang Pier went down to their second straight loss to end up tied with their tormentors at 1-2.
“It’s just one game. The goal is to be consistent. Now we have to prepare and be better in our next game,” said Blackwater coach Jeff Cariaso.
Escoto had 15 points and free agent acquisition Troy Mallilin also finished in double figures with 10 for the Bossing, whose entire bench outscored the Batang Pier, 60-39.
Blackwater also outworked Northport on perimeter points, 59-34, while shooting a high 40 percent from three-point range (15-of-37) as Barefield went 5-of-8 and Ilagan 3-of-5.
Ilagan also had a game-high eight assists, while David added six rebounds in a strong bounce-back game after being held scoreless (0-of-7) in a 111-80 loss to Converge in the team’s previous game.
The 22-point blowout was the largest winning margin of the team under Cariaso and the next biggest since the Bossing’s all-time franchise best of 107-70 win over Terrafirma during the 2022 Philippine Cup when the team was still with former coach Ariel Vanguardia.
With Tolentino struggling (6-of-17) after coming off a hip flexor injury that forced him to miss Northport’s 113-96 loss to Rain or Shine, Joshua Munzon picked up the scoring cudgels for Northport with 27 points, while adding seven rebounds, four assists, and four steals.
William Navarro had a double-double of 24 points and 11 rebounds and Tolentino finished with 15 points and six rebounds, for the Bossing who fell by as many as 104-77.
The scores:
Blackwater (120) - Barefield 20, David 19, Ilagan 17, Escoto 15, Andrade 14, Mallilin 10, Ayonayon 9, Guinto 7, Tungcab 5, Chua 2, Tratter 2, Casio 0.
Northport (98) - Munzon 27, Navarro 24, Tolentino 15, Bulanadi 12, Jalalon 7, Onwubere 6, Cuntapay 3, Flores 3, Yu 1, Nelle 0, Kwekuteye 0, Taha 0.
Quarterscores: 20-22; 48-47; 88-74; 120-98.
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