By ADRIAN STEWART CO
Blackwater Bossing survived an endgame rally by NLEX Road Warriors to score a 93-88 victory in the opener of PBA on Tour at the Caloocan Sports Complex over the weekend.
Leading by as much as 18 points in the first half, the Bossing were stunned by a huge run by the Road Warriors to cut the deficit to 85-88 on four straight points by Sean Anthony late in the fourth quarter.
Joshua Torralba created some separation for the Bossing with a jumper at the 1:19 mark before Regile Kent Ilagan wrapped up the victory with his two free throws with less than a minute left.
Mike Ayonayon tallied 16 points, including two three-point conversions, to go with two rebounds and two assists to lead the way for the Bossing, which was handled by assistant coach Joe Silva.
Rey Suerte contributed 14 points, including two three-point conversions, while Ilagan had an all-around game of nine points, eight rebounds, four assists, and a steal for the Bossing.
“Mga bata kami, so kailangan tumakbo, itaas ang energy,” Ilagan, who was named as the Player of the Game in the win, said.
“‘Yan ang trinabaho namin sa ensayo. We worked on our stamina,” he added.
The Bossing, who played minus veteran players Jeth Troy Rosario and Jvee Casio, imposed their game right in the opening quarter, taking a 23-16 lead then stretching it to 49-36 at the half.
However, the Road Warriors showed some life in the second half as they trimmed the deficit to 69-74 after three quarters before pulling even closer in the fourth period at 85-88.
Anthony led the way for the Road Warriors with 18 points and eight rebounds, Celedonio Trollano registered double-double 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Pedrito Galanza and Dominick Fajardo had 13 and 10 points, respectively.
The Road Warriors played minus center Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser, who was rested as he had just returned from his stint with the Gilas Pilipinas in the 32nd Southeast Asian Games in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
BLACKWATER 93 — Ayonayon 16, Suerte 14, Ilagan 9, Sena 9, Torralba 8, Hill 8, Amer 5, Taha 5, Publico 4, Mccarthy 3, Banal 1.
NLEX 88 — Anthony 18, Trollano 15, Galanza 13, Fajardo 10, Alas 8, Rosales 7, Doliguez 5, Rangel 4, Gabo 3, Pascual 2, Celda 0.
Quarterscores: 23-16, 49-36, 74-69, 93-88./ASC, WDJ