AS expected, Meralco is fully re-charged after the long holidays.

The Bolts welcomed the new year with a bang, pulling off an electrifying 88-83 victory over Hong Kong Eastern in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

After dropping two consecutive games, including a disappointing 94-110 setback to Converge on Christmas Day, the Bolts went to import Akil Mitchell and Bong Quinto roll back Hong Kong Eastern and bounce back into contention right on the league’s first playing day of the new year.

Mitchell delivered an impressive performance, scoring 31 points on 12-of-25 shooting from the field, along with 13 rebounds, seven steals, and five assists in 41 minutes of action.

Quinto added 16 points and four rebounds for the Luigi Trillo-mentored Bolts, who improved their record to 4-2 win-loss.

The Bolts also got nine points, five rebounds and three assists from Aaron Black, nine points, four rebounds and three assists from Chris Newsome and six points each from Cliff Hodge and Chris Banchero.

Chris McLaughlin led the losing effort for the Eastern with 28 points on 7-of-14 shooting, 17 rebounds, and four blocks in almost 39 minutes of play.

Kobey Lam added 16 points and five rebounds while Steven Guinchard had 13 points and five rebounds. Hayden Blankley chipped in with 12 points and five rebounds.

The Bolts held a six-point lead, 84-78, after Quinto’s two free throws in the final three minutes.

Lam, however, eesponded with a three-pointer to cut the deficit to 81-84 with still 2:44 remaining.

Aaron Black then drove to the basket for a layup, extending the Bolts’ lead to 86-81 with 45 seconds left.

After Blankley missed a three-point attempt, Newsome was fouled and sank two crucial free throws to seal the victory for the Bolts.

The scores:

Meralco (88) — Mitchell 31, Quinto 16, Black 9, Newsome 9, Black 9, Hodge 6, Banchero 6, Caram 4, Torres 3, Bates 2, Cansino 2, Rios 0, ALmazan 0, Reyson 0
Hong Kong Eastern (83) — McLaughlin 28, Lam 16, Guinchard 13, Blankley 12, Cao 5, Cheung 3, Chan 2, Yang 2, Pok 2, Leung 0, Xu 0.
Quarterscores: 19-15, 39-36, 69-67, 88-83.

Games Tuesday:

(Philsports Arena)
5 p.m. — Terrafirma vs. Phoenix
7:30 p.m.– Meralco vs. TNT

AUTHOR PROFILE

Robert Andaya