NLEX pulls plug on Phoenix’s bid

NLEX gave Phoenix the boot in a 105-95 victory to formally close the quarterfinals race in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup Sunday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Robert Bolick lit up the stats with an all-around performance with 20 points, eight rebounds and seven assists as the Road Warriors rebounded from a previous setback by eliminating the Fuel Masters, whose seventh loss crushed their hopes of barging into the next round.

NLEX’s seventh win in nine games put the Jong Uichico-mentored squad in a good position in the chase for the Top 4 and the twice-to-beat incentive that goes with it.

The Road Warriors had some anxious moments in the third quarter when Phoenix erased a 13-point first half deficit to force a deadlock before NLEX mounted a strong counterattack to pull through despite playing with just nine available players.

“I appreciate the effort that the players brought out today. Although we’re undermanned and they had to play extra minutes with little rest, they still played with utmost effort,” Uichico said.

The Road Warriors played without Richie Rodger, Mike Miranda, Enoch Valdez, Jonnel Policarpio and Dominic Fajardo due to injury or illness.

Javee Mocon led NLEX on offense with 23 points and nine rebounds, JB Bahio added 15 while Anthony Semerad and Xyrus Torres scored 14 and 13 points, respectively.

The Fuel Masters tied the game at 64 with 6:26 left in the third quarter before Bahio nailed a jumper to spark a 9-0 run that brought order back for the Road Warriors, who were never threatened from there.

Phoenix slipped to 2-7 despite Jason Perkins’ 28-point effort and Ken Tuffin’s 17 points.

Also in the quarters are Magnolia, San Miguel Beer, Barangay Ginebra, defending champion Meralco, Converge, grand slam-seeking TNT and Rain or Shine.