NLEX survived a late rally from Converge, 88-83, to extend its winning streak to six in the PBA Philippine Cup on Friday at the Philsports Arena in Pasig.
The Road Warriors had their biggest lead at 76-58 with 1:25 left in the third period after a Robert Bolick jumper before Justine Baltazar closed the frame at 76-60, still in NLEX’ favor.
Converge, however, surged in the final frame and trimmed the deficit to within three, 81-78, at the 4:08 mark. Javee Mocon then answered with a jumper followed by Robert Bolick’s triple with 2:47 left to give NLEX an eight point lead. Another Bolick basket put NLEX at 88 and eventually delivered the win as they kept the FiberXers at bay.
Bolick led NLEX with 19 points, 10 assists, seven rebounds, a steal, and a block, while Xyrus Torres had 18 points. Mocon and Anthony Semerad added 10 points apiece as NLEX improved to 6-1.
Justine Baltazar and Justin Arana stuffed the stat sheet anew with the former making 21 points, 10 boards, and a block, while the latter had 12 points, 12 rebounds, and three assists. Alec Stockton added 17 points, while Schonny Winston had 16 points as Converge slipped to 5-4.
Scores:
NLEX 88 – Bolick 19, Torres 18, Semerad 10, Mocon 10, Bahio 9, Ramirez 8, Fajardo 6, Alas 5, Herndon 3, Nieto 0.
Converge 83 – Baltazar 21, Stockton 17, Winston 16, Arana 12, Garcia 9, Delos Santos 3, Suerte 3, Corpuz 2, Racal 0, Nermal 0, Caralipio 0, R. Santos 0, B.Santos 0.
Quarters: 31-23, 52-42, 76-60, 88-83.
—JKC, GMA Integrated News