Converge is aiming to earn its first-ever twice-to-beat incentive since joining the Philippine Basketball Association, but coach Franco Atienza would be the first to say that it will be a tough task.
“Every team would like to have that twice-to-beat advantage. It’s very useful, especially in the playoffs,” said Atienza following their 127-109 rout of Blackwater in the Commissioner’s Cup at Ynares Sports Center in Antipolo late Sunday.
“For us, we will just take care of the present. And right now, the present for us is San Miguel. That’s our last game in the eliminations,” Atienza added.
He was referring to their Jan. 24 outing against the struggling powerhouse Beermen on Friday.
“Yet, even if we win over San Miguel, many things could still happen. We don’t want things to get out of our control,” he added.
The FiberXers got huge numbers from top rookies Jordan Heading and Justine Baltazar, as well as import Cheick Diallo, who all finished with 20-plus points each, leading the team to its eighth win in 11 outings. They are closing in on a possible twice-to-beat advantage going into the playoffs.
Heading had a team-high 22 points on 3-of-5 shooting from three-point range, while Diallo came through with a double-double of 20 points and 18 rebounds. Baltazar, the top rookie pick in the last draft, finished with a conference-high 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Meanwhile, NLEX broke out of its rut and got back in contention with a 108-94 drubbing of Phoenix Super LPG in the other game.
Robert Bolick snapped out of a personal slump, exploding for 26 points, including a four-point play and two three-pointers, along with nine assists and five rebounds. He led the Road Warriors’ successful effort to end a five-game losing streak.
It was NLEX’s first win after successive losses to Barangay Ginebra, Converge, Magnolia, Meralco, and TNT. The Road Warriors had gone on a long skid following their last win over the San Miguel Beermen, 104-99, on Dec. 8.
Michael Watkins produced a huge double-double with 22 points and 18 rebounds, while Jonnel Policarpio, Robert Herndon, and Anthony Semerad chipped in 17, 15, and 11 points, respectively. NLEX rose to joint ninth with Magnolia at 4-6, now just half a game behind San Miguel Beer (4-5).
Coach Jong Uichico’s troops, however, must keep going and sweep their last two games against Rain or Shine and Eastern for a possible crack at the playoffs.
The Fuel Masters suffered their second straight defeat and got stuck at 11th place with a 3-7 record. Their last two games are against Blackwater on Tuesday and TNT on Friday.
Bolick, Herndon, Semerad, Xyrus Torres, and Brandon Ramirez combined for 12 three-pointers and two connections from the extended rainbow arc in a torrid shooting performance that dismantled the Phoenix squad, which led 48-45 at the half.The scores
FIRST GAME
Converge (127) — Heading 22, Baltazar 20, Diallo 20, Stockton 19, Delos Santos 10, Winston 10, Santos 8, Nieto 8, Arana 7, Racal 3, Caralipio 0, Andrade 0.
Blackwater (109) — King 34, Tungcab 20, Chua 16, David 14, Kwekuteye 10, Casio 6, Corteza 4, Ponferrada 3, Guinto 2, Montalbo 0, Ayonayon 0, Jopia 0.
Quarterscores: 33-26; 70-56; 97-88; 127-109.
SECOND GAME
NLEX 108 – Bolick 26, Watkins 22, Policarpio 17, Herndon 15, Semerad 11, Torres 9, Ramirez 5, Nieto 3, Mocon 0.
Phoenix 94 – Smith 36, Rivero 13, Perkins 8, Muyang 8, Tio 7, Tuffin 6, Garcia 5, Jazul 5, Alejandro 3, Ballungay 2, Manganti 1, Salado 0, Camacho 0, Ular 0, Daves 0, Verano 0.
Quarterscores: 25-17, 45-48, 86-73, 108-94