By REYNALD MAGALLON
Meralco left nothing to chance and blasted the import-less Terrafirma, 113-69, to clinch the last twice-to-beat armor in the PBA Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium on Friday, May 8.
The Bolts immediately stepped their foot on the gas pedal, building a double-digit spread right on the opening frame and never looked back from there to officially position themselves within the top 4.
Marvin Jones presided over the hot start for Meralco, firing 10 of his 14 points in the opening frame while Chris Newsome and Javee Mocon combined for 14 in the Bolts’ 37-point explosion in that quarter.
Newsome also finished with 14 while CJ Cansino added 13 as four other Bolts finished in double-figures.
Meralco improved to an 8-3 record while Terrafirma, which missed import Ali Mubashar in their final game of the conference, ended up with a 4-8 slate.
Meanwhile, Rain or Shine returned to its explosive scoring ways, manhandling Titan Ultra, 142-131, to get the much-needed momentum, heading into the playoffs.
The Elasto Painters pulled away during a fiery third quarter scoring burst that saw them put up 46 points to create a 116-93 lead at the end of the third frame after only leading by four, 68-64 at the break.
Jaylen Johnson came three-point shy of a triple-double with his 31 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. Christian Manaytay added a career-high of 18 points while Caelan Tiongson also had the same scoring output.
Adrian Nocum and Leonard Santillan added 14 points as ROS closed out the eliminations with an impressive 9-3 record.
