MERALCO survived a huge fightback by TNT, 110-106, on Tuesday in the PBA 50th Season Commissioner’s Cup at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
The Bolts nearly squandered a 107-93 lead with 3:20 left but held on to secure their fourth win in five outings.
Meralco opened with a 9-0 run and its lead reached as high as 20 on the way to leading TNT its second loss in four games.
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The Bolts also held Bol Bol to his lowest scoring output thus far in the conference before a good-sized Tuesday night crowd that obviously came to watch the celebrated TNT import.
“The last tournament, we were in a semifinals against TNT but this is a different make-up with Bol Bol there,” said Meralco coach Luigi Trillo.
"You have to TNT credit also. They hung around. We were up big at the half, and then the third quarter, they kept at it. Five minutes left, we were up 12, but they persevered.”
“A win is a win. We will take it,” added Trillo, whose team moved into a tie with NLEX at second place with a 4-1 win-loss record.
Marvin Jones had 29 points and 12 rebounds for the Bolts, including a free throw with 10.2 seconds left that eventually settled the final score. Bol missed a four-point shot in the final offensive possession of TNT.
CJ Cansino had 19 points including two free throws that got Meralco up by 14 before that TNT comeback attempt.
Bol had 28 points, well below his average of 37.3 in the first three games. He also sat out the last seven minutes of the third quarter and the first five minutes of the fourth.
An RR Pogoy three, and two free throws each from Rey Nambatac and Jordan Heading made it a 107-105 game but Pogoy airballed a three, and Bol's kick-out pass went straight to Chris Newsome, who knocked down two free throws for 109-105 lead.
Bol was fouled with Meralco in penalty but only made one free throw, and missed that contested four-point shot in TNT's final few offensive plays. He went 9-of-16 from the free-throw line.
The scores:
Meralco 110 – Jones 29, Cansino 19, Almazan 12, Hodge 10, Mocon 9, Quinto 7, Newsome 7, Banchero 6, Black 4, Brickman 4, Pascual 3.
TNT 106 – Bol 28, Heading 21, Oftana 10, Galinato 8, Nambatac 7, Ganuelas-Rosser 6, Chua 6, Khobuntin 6, Ferrer 5, Pogoy 5, Nieto 2, Castro 2, Nava 0, Williams 0, Aurin 0.
Quarters: 27-21; 54-40; 88-71; 110-106.
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