ANTIPOLO – Meralco stayed unbeaten and handed hot-starting Phoenix Super LPG its first loss, 93-86, on Saturday in the PBA 50th Season Commissioner's Cup at the Ynares Center.
The Bolts pulled away in the fourth quarter, riding the breakout performance of rookie Jason Brickman to improve to 2-0 (win-loss).
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Brickman had 16 points, seven rebounds, and five assists for Meralco, which outscored Phoenix, 20-15, in the final period to turn the game around.
The loss dropped Phoenix Super LPG to 2-1, allowing Terrafirma to keep solo first place with a 3-0 win-loss mark.
The Fuelmasters also sorely missed the presence of Jason Perkins, who sat out most of the contest.
Chris Banchero also provided a spark off the bench with 17 points, as the Bolts outscored their second- and third-stringer counterparts at Meralco, 39-15.
“The first stringers kinda took care of the job but I also want to complement the guys off the bench,” said Meralco coach Luigi Trillo. “I thought Aaron Black played well, Bong Quinto played well, they kinda did a good job in that third that got us a little bit of a cushion. And then the starters came back.”
Marvin Jones had a double-double of 15 points and 15 rebounds for the Bolts, who also got 11 and 10 points, respectively, from Chris Newsome and CJ Cansino.
James Dickey III had 28 points and 21 rebounds, and Ricci Rivero had 22 points in a game that saw 15 lead changes only for the Bolts to gain separation in the end.
Phoenix also missed the services of Kai Ballungay, who suffered a sprained ankle in the team's previous game against Titan Ultra.
The scores:
Meralco 93 – Banchero 17, Brickman 16, Jones 15, Newsome 11, Cansino 10, Quinto 8, Black 6, Mocon 4, Hodge 2, Magbuhos 2, Almazan 2, Bates 0.
Phoenix Super LPG 86 – Dickey 28, Rivero 22, Tuffin 11, Santos 9, Nelle 6, Perkins 4, Escandor 3, Caperal 2, Cullar 1, Delos Santos 0, Ando 0, Daves 0.
Quarters: 18-23; 47-49; 73-71; 93-86.
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