THE door to the PBA Season 49 quarterfinals already shut, the Blackwater Bossing went for the next best thing: Go out swinging.
And the fired-up Bossing, led by George King's monster 64-point scorcher, did it at the expense of Group B's top quarterfinalist itself, Rain or Shine, 139-118, in a strong ending to their campaign Monday night at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
The Bossing finished the group stage at 5-5. Although level with NLEX in win-loss record, it was the Road Warriors who grabbed the fourth and last quarters seat of the bracket due to superior quotient (+6) in the tiebreaker versus the Bossing.
Coach Jeff Cariaso's charges reported for action versus ROS knowing that win or lose, they wouldn't make it to the next round.
But they kept their drive in their conference swan song.
Sponsored content:
"Mahirap siya because it was one of those things where I felt if given a chance, we would have showcased what kind of a team we are at this point," said Cariaso.
"So, the second best (thing) was, regardless of having no chance, I just wanted to challenge them to perform tonight, respect the game, respect the blessings that we are playing. That's what I shared with them and they came out and played well."
King was the most responsive to this challenge.
The explosive import opened the game with a 25-point outburst as Blackwater seized control, 41-34. By the second period, King and Co. were up by 16 then extended it to a high of 25 at 125-100 before settling for a winning margin of 21.
King set a new franchise highest score in place of the 56 netted by Troy Williams in a 106-119 loss to Terrafirma in the 2023 Governors' Cup and accounted for the most points in the league since Al Thornton gunned down 69 in the 2016 Commissioner's Cup.
Sponsored content:
King's scoring spree was highlighted by three four-point shots, a pair of three-pointers and a perfect 20-of-20 from the free throw line, which enabled him to equal the second all-time most foul shots made without a miss in a single game by Wes Matthews in 1991.
"I went a hundred percent from the free throw line, 20 for 20, but I think within my first couple of free throws, I knew I was like, it's going to be a good night tonight," said King.
"And you know, in a game like this (no-bearing), I had to find motivation, right? And that's what the best players do. And I said, what a great opportunity tonight to play basketball. Essentially, there's no pressure. I know that I'm probably going to play 40 minutes tonight. Let's see what I'm made of," he added.
Despite the loss, ROS stayed in the No. 1 spot in this group at 7-3 for a Last-8 duel versus the No. 4 in Group A, Magnolia.(OL)
The Scores :
BLACKWATER 139 - King 64, Barefield 21, Escoto 13, Rosario 12, Mitchell 11, Corteza 5, Chua 4, Casio 3, Ilagan 3, Montalbo 2, Jopia 1, Ponferrada 0, Kwekuteye 0, Suerte 0.
RAIN OR SHINE 118 - Clarito 18, Asistio 14, Fuller 14, Tiongson 11, Lemetti 9, Nocum 9, Ildefonso 8, Caracut 7, Mamuyac 6, Belga 6, Datu 3, Villegas 3, Escandor 2, Norwood 0, Borboran 0.
QUARTERS : 41-37, 70-54, 106-91, 139-118
