WITH a big boost from rookie Xyrus Torres and ace veteran Robert Bolick, NLEX rebounded from a conference losing debut with a 109-95 spanking of Rain or Shine in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium Saturday.
Torres erupted for 28 points on a near flawless 11-of-12 clip while Bolick delivered 23 points, 12 assists and seven rebounds in a big all-around game, leading the Road Warriors to a bounceback win from an 89-98 defeat at the hands of the San Miguel Beermen a week ago.
Anthony Semerad contributed 18 points and seven rebounds while Javee Mocon chipped in 12 markers and 10 boards as the Road Warriors shook off a losing debut and overcame the Elasto Painters' strong start to hit the win-column in the season-ending tourney.
The Elasto Painters, Final Four finishers in the first two conferences, looked headed for a triumphant conference debut as they jumped out of the gate and led by 11 points early in the contest.
But the Road Warriors surged ahead, 32-25, at the end of the first frame and kept control to the very end, thus, going 1-1 at the resumption of the tourney after the Friday breather giving way to the Gala Night toasting the 50 PBA Greatest.
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Torres and his teammates sat on a 60-50 cushion at the half, stretched their lead to 86-73 through the third period and kept the E-Painters at bay through the last quarter.
The E-Painters fired a lot from the beyond the arc but struggled with a 13-of-36 clip and went 40.7 percent from field shooting overall.
The Road Warriors, on the other hand, hit at an impressive 55.4-percent clip (31-56).
Caelan Tiongson was 3-of-6 in three-point shooting and paced the losing team with 24 points.
Leonard Santillan, Jhonard Clarito and Gian Mamuyac scored 13, 12 and 10 points, respectively, off the bench while Adrian Nocum tossed in 11 in a starting role.(SB)
The scores:
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NLEX 109 - Torres 28, Bolick 23, Semerad 18, Mocon 12, Bahio 8, Nieto 5, Fajardo 5, Ramirez 3, Miranda 2, Policarpio 2, Alas 2, Valdez 1.
Rain or Shine 95 - Tiongson 24, Santillan 13, Clarito 12, Nocum 11, Mamuyac 10, Caracut 9, Norwood 6, Malonzo 5, Lemetti 3, Asistio 2, Datu 0.
Quarterscores: 32-25, 60-50, 86-73, 109-95
