STILL without coach Jeff Cariaso, Blackwater continued its winning ways by outplaying Meralco, 89-82, in the PBA On Tour on Friday.
Troy Rosario had another big game for the Bossing with 21 points and nine rebounds to guide the team to its third straight win and a 6-3 record in the preseason.
READ: Tyrus Hill out for remainder of PBA on Tour
Deputy Joe Silva called the shots for Blackwater in the absence of Cariaso, who was down with a flu.
Cariaso was already around in the team's last outing against San Miguel but opted not to coach after coming fresh from a one-month coaching clinic in the US.
"Last-minute. May flu-like symptoms siya. And kanina hindi niya na talaga kaya," said Silva. "And he told the coaches he'd rather rest for the coming games."
At the same time, Silva lauded Rosario for slowly regaining his playing form.
"We're glad and happy that he is with us. He's that superstar na kailangan namin as stabilizer. When the game is on the line, just give the ball to him or we can go to him, offensively and defensively," said the former Ateneo champion coach of Kai Sotto.
Rosario got plenty of help from Mike DiGregorio and Rashawn McCarthy, who combined for 31 points, while sophomore Ato Ular pounded the boards with 14 rebounds.
Meralco played minus active consultant Nenad Vucinic and fell to a 6-4 record as it failed to give deputy Gene Afable his first win in the preseason.
Big man Raymond Almazan had a double-double of 18 points and 14 rebounds, while Bong Quinto also finished with 18.
The scores:
Blackwater (89) - Rosario 21, Digregorio 16, McCarthy 15, Suerte 9, Ilagan 8, Torralba 5, Ular 4, Escoto 4, Ayonayon 3, Amer 2, Publico 2, Sena 0, Banal 0.
Meralco (82) - Almazan 18, Quinto 18, Hodge 10, Johnson 7, Pasaol 7, Maliksi 7, Black 6, Dario 6, Torres 3, Pascual 0, Rios 0, Jose 0.
Quarterscores: 23-20; 47-45; 71-70; 89-82.
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