BINAN - Blackwater made short work of Columbian Dyip, 120-99, to solidify its bid for a twice-to-beat edge in the quarterfinals of the PBA Governors Cup Saturday at the Alonte Sports Center.
The Elite went to import Henry Walker, John Pinto, and Allein Maliksi right away to establish early control, 33-17, before coasting to the easy win in the curtain raiser of a Petron Saturday Special game.
Walker finished with a team-high 26 points on a perfect 9-of-9 shooting from the field, while adding 11 rebounds, three assists, and the highlight-reel of the match after coming through a two-handed, follow-up slam off a blocked shot on teammate Mark Cruz's breakaway lay-up by Dyip import Akeem Wright.
Mac Belo added 16, while Maliksi and rookie guard Paul Zamar had 13 points each.
"They did not underestimate them (Dyip), which is what I had been telling them the past one week," said Blackwater head coach Bong Ramos. "I remind them that the first five wins that we got, we were playing good defense. Not perfect, but we can sustain the defense."
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The wire-to-wire victory allowed Blackwater to rebound from a two-game skid, and more importantly, positioned itself for a possible Top Four finish heading into the playoffs,
The Elite improved their record at 7-3 to create a three-way logjam with idles Alaska and Phoenix for third to fifth spots.
They will face the Fuel Masters in the final game of the eliminations on Nov. 4 in a showdown whose outcome could seal the fate of both teams come the quarterfinals,
"Napakalakas ng Phoenix. It's really a big game, we have to be ready for that," said Ramos.
The Dyip ended their campaign with a 1-10 record, failing to score a fitting follow-up to their 100-84 upset of Rain or Shine last week for their lone victory in the conference.
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Wright topscored for 28 points and 10 rebounds, while the Fil-Am duo of Jerramy King and Rashawn McCharthy each had 11 points in a losing cause for Columbia.(RG)
The scores:
Blackwater 120 - Walker 26, Belo 16, Maliksi 13, Zamar 13, Digregorio 11, Erram 9, Pinto 8, Cortez 6, Javier 5, Jose 5, Palma 5, Sumang 3, Sena 0, Cruz 0, Banal 0.
Columbian 99 - Wright 28, King 11, McCarthy 11, Reyes 9, Khobuntin 7, Gabriel 7, Cabrera 6, Corpuz 5, Tubid 4, Ababou 4, Sara 3, Celda 2, Escoto 2, Cahilig 0.
Quarters: 33-20, 63-42, 93-69, 120-99.
