Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 18) – After a close loss in their opening game, the NLEX Road Warriors made sure to catch a big fish in their next match in dominating fashion.
NLEX gave a rude welcome to defending PBA Philippine Cup champions Barangay Ginebra San Miguel with a 94-75 rout on Sunday at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.
The tested backcourt tandem of Kevin Alas and Kiefer Ravena provided the scoring punches for the Road Warriors with 20 and 19 points, respectively, en route to their first win of the season.
NLEX head coach Yeng Guiao did not expect his wards to finish with a big lead against the defending titlists, but he credited the rout to an efficient defense, as they bounced back from their 82-83 loss against Rain or Shine on July 16.
“This is not the full potential of Ginebra. We’re just very lucky we got them on their first game. I know they are still making adjustments,” said Guiao. “If we did not have defense, we don’t have any chance.”
The Road Warriors unleashed their might early in the first quarter with a 17-2 lead, through the exploits of Ravena and swingman Don Trollano.
The Gin Kings steadily gained ground against NLEX, eventually posting their only lead in the game, 35-34, coming from Japeth Aguilar’s markers. But Ravena responded with five of NLEX’s next seven points to establish a 41-35 halftime lead.
In the third canto, the Road Warriors started to match their offensive rhythm with defensive adjustments to post their biggest lead of the game, 72-52.
Ginebra continued its struggle in the fourth quarter as NLEX coasted to victory.
NLEX shot 12 treys in the game, compared to Ginebra’s five. Their bench players also provided a solid contribution with 43 points, higher than Ginebra’s 31.
Aguilar paced Ginebra with 15 markers while Scottie Thompson chipped in 12 points for the losing effort.
The scores:
NLEX (94) – Alas 20, Ravena 19, Trollano 11, Semerad 11, Quinahan 10, Cruz 9, Soyud 7, Miranda 5, Oftana 2
GINEBRA (75) – Aguilar 15, Thompson 12, Tenorio 11, Pringle 8, Caperal 8, Standhardinger 8, Chan 4, Devance 3, Enriquez 2, Ayaay 2, Tolentino 2
Quarterscores: 26-15, 41-35, 72-55, 94-75
