MERALCO stretched its winning streak to three and Magnolia won back-to-back games for the first time in the PBA Governors Cup on Wednesday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The undermanned Bolts routed Converge FiberXers, 116-88, while the Hotshots turned back the strong challenge of a Northport side that played minus import Venky Jois and William Navarro, 105-94.
Without five players in Cliff Hodge, Aaron Black, Raymund Almazan, Allein Maliksi, and Norbert Torres, the Bolts are still good enough to take the solo lead in Group A with a 4-1 standings.
Magnolia on the other hand, rose to 3-2 as it won its first consecutive games in the conference.
The losses dropped both Northport and Converge to a similar 2-3 record in the same group.
Here are some of the takeaways in the last playdate at the Big Dome before the league returns to the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
1. NO BAD BLOOD IN FIRST MEETING BETWEEN JALALON, MAGNOLIA – all parties had already moved on, but it’s still surreal seeing Jalalon in Northport’s orange-colored jersey going one-on-one and guarding former backcourt partner Mark Barroca in a game. While the match was intense, its obvious Jalalon had fun going up against Barroca and the rest of the Hotshots, with whom he won a PBA championship and went to a lot of wars. Without their import and second leading scorer, the Batang Pier lost steam in the end and suffered their second straight loss. Jalalon only had five points, three rebounds, and five assists.
2. ARVIN TOLENTINO RUNS OUT OF ARTILLERY - the NorthPort main man was held to just 11 points on 5-of-14 shooting at a time when his team needed him most. Tolentino did grab 12 rebounds and issued six assists, but committed a team-high five turnovers together with Joshua Munzon. To think that just a week ago, the 28-year-old forward put on one of the best scoring acts in the league in a long while, coming through with a new franchise-high of 51 points in a 135-109 destruction of Converge.
3. CADE FLORES SHOWS WORTH AT NORTHPORT – the sophomore banger proved he can deliver if given the opportunity. The 6-foot-5 forward out of Arellano delivered a double-double of 23 points and 10 rebounds as he spearheaded a spirited NorthPort fight despite missing two key players and Tolentino having a bad shooting night.
4. MERALCO BENCH ANSWERS THE BELL –The injury-riddled Bolts continue to thrive, thanks to a reliable bench that plays its role to the hilt. Veteran backup Anjo Caram led the way with 16 points, while Alvin Pasaol and Jolo Mendoza added 12 and 10, respectively. Their support certainly goes a long way for a team waiting for some key players to become healthy again.
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