By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
THE Meralco Bolts finally returned to winning in the Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup on Sunday, coming from behind in the closing moments to defeat the now-skidding NLEX Road Warriors, 108-105, in league action at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Pushed to the wall by NLEX, Meralco (2-6) rode on the clutch plays of Baser Amer and import Allen Durham late in the match to snap a six-game losing streak while dealing the Road Warriors (4-5) a third defeat in a row in the season-ending PBA tournament.
NLEX eventually settled for a 17-13 lead with one quarter down.
The two teams continued to slug it out in the second period, hardly allowing one another to make much headway.
JR Quiñahan helped the Road Warriors to a 26-21 advantage with six minutes left in the frame after stringing up six straight points.
Mr. Durham though would pull the Bolts back as they tied the count at 32-all by the 1:44 mark.
NLEX then outscored Meralco, 7-4, the rest of the way to hold control by the halfway point, 39-34.
The Road Warriors opened the second half with an 8-2 blast to extend their lead to 47-38 in the first two minutes of the third period.
They would maintain control amid repeated attempts by the Bolts to rally back, holding a 58-51 advantage with six minutes to go in the third canto.
Mr. Durham pushed Meralco to within two points, 60-58, at the 5:23 mark only see his team left behind anew by NLEX, 71-60, after two minutes.
The Road Warriors held a 14-point cushion, 80-66, heading into the fourth quarter.
Meralco started the fourth period bent on making up for lost ground behind Mr. Durham and Baser Amer.
But NLEX collectively stayed on top things, not allowing Meralco to gain much headway in its push.
Mr. Durham, however, would not allow the Road Warriors run away with the win.
He led once again a Bolts rally to come within four points, 93-89, with 5:05 left on the clock.
NLEX import Aaron Fuller steadied things for his team to create further distance anew, 101-93, after two minutes.
Meralco forged ahead to try and claw its way back, tying the count at 105-all with 46 ticks remaining, thanks to an and-one play from Mr. Amer.
The Road Warriors tried to regain the lead but turned the ball over, allowing the Bolts to snatch the victory.
The Bolts capitalized on the opportunity as Mr. Amer once again delivered with a three-pointer with 15 seconds left in the game to make it 108-105 in favor of Meralco.
NLEX tried to salvage the game after but Meralco would not allow it as time expired.
Mr. Durham had 36 points, 18 rebounds and seven assists to lead Meralco with Mr. Amer adding 22 points.
Chris Newsome had 14 points and nine assists.
Mr. Fuller, meanwhile, led NLEX with 31 points, 13 rebounds and six assists.
Larry Fonacier had 21 points while Mr. Quiñahan added 17.