(CNN Philippines) — For Meralco coach Norman Black, a good mix of offense from import Andre Emmett and his locals is the right formula to winning games in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Governors’ Cup.
“For us to be successful, (Emmett) can’t do everything by himself,” Black said after his team notched their first win of the conference at the expense of San Miguel Beer on Saturday (May 9).
In the Bolts’ 92-73 opening day loss to GlobalPort, Emmett exploded for 41 points but got little contribution from his teammates.
But in Saturday’s victory, Meralco got a total of 75 points from the local wards.
Related: Meralco zaps San Miguel Beer in overtime, registers first victory
Gary David scored 23 markers to complement Emmett’s 31. Rey Guevarra added 11 off the bench, while Cliff Hodge and Reynel Hugnatan each chipped in 10 points for the Bolts, who bounced back from the opening loss to break into the win column.
“It’s a big win considering we’re coming off a loss,” said Black. “The last thing we wanted was to go 0-2.”
But more importantly for Black, the team didn’t solely rely on Emmett for offense.
“My local players did a much better job playing alongside our import.”
