(CNN Philippines) — Purefoods Star Hotshots relied heavily on import Denzel Bowles to hammer out a 100-94 victory over the Talk N Text Tropang Texters in Game 1 of their Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Commissioner’s Cup semifinals duel Wednesday (April 1).
Bowles wreaked havoc on the Tropang Texters with 49 points on 23-of-36 shooting from the field. He also collared 10 rebounds to go with five assists and two blocks.
The 6-foot-9 import dropped 18 points in the opening quarter to help Purefoods grab control for at least the first three quarters.
Talk ‘N Text gained steam in the second half, trimming a 21-point gap to one, 84-83, in the fourth period before the Hotshots broke away after a Bowles jumper and a James Yap layup.
“Denzel had an awesome first half, but we got too reliant with him,” said Purefoods coach Tim Cone after the contest at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.
“We have to figure out a way to get the locals involved.”
Yap added 18 points for the Hotshots, who will go on a Holy Week break with a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five series.
Import Ivan Johnson instigated Talk ‘N Text’s surge, scattering 28 of his total output of 33 points in the second half. He was 3-of-8 from the three-point area.
Jayson Castro and Ranidel de Ocampo added 19 and 15 points, respectively.
“I thought they dominated us in the second half,” Cone said.
Game 2 is on Monday (April 6).
