MAGNOLIA got amply rewarded for its rigorous preparations when it blew by Blackwater, 106-84, Saturday and open its PBA Philippine Cup campaign on a very high note at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
Zavier Lucero's 21 points led four other Hotshots who scored at least 13 as they took full control right in the opening quarter before steadily building up momentum that netted them as much as a 106-81 lead.
For coach Chito Victolero, the opening win is a payback of sorts for the month-long gear-up Magnolia undertook after falling to top-ranked NorthPort in just one game in their last Commissioner's Cup quarterfinals duel.
"We just tried to focus on our defense and ball movement during our four-week break, 'yung preparation namin, and I think lumabas naman sa laro ngayon," said Victolero.
"Medyo gumanda 'yung depensa namin. We limited them under 90 points and that's good for us and, also, we had (21) assists. I think that's because of our ball movement, nagkaroon ng maganda 'yung motion offense namin."
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Indeed, Magnolia's defensive intensity limited Blackwater to just a 32-of-78 field shooting while the Hotshots' own 38-of-70 clip enabled them to withstand their 20 turnovers.
Aside from Lucero, who also had seven rebounds, standing out the most among the total 15 players utilized by Victolero were Ian Sangalang (15 points, 10 rebounds), Mark Barroca (14 points), and Jerom Lastimosa and Calvin Abueva (13 apiece).
Christian David finished with 31 points and Sedrick Barefield 24 points on top of seven assists, but no other Blackwater player managed to finish in double figures.
And while the Bossing struggled to find other consistent scorers, their defense also left plenty to be desired as the Hotshots managed to score 37 points in the first quarter and 32 in the third period, the latter leading to an 85-66 bulge going to the final canto.
"Credit to the players. They did a very good job," said Victolero, whose team's pre-conference hard work also initially led to a plus-18 advantage in rebounds and plus-12 in inside points.
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"In terms of preparation they worked hard during practice and we tried to give emphasis now on the little things na medyo nakalimutan namin nu'ng last conference," added Victolero. (NC)
