NLEX Road Warriors’ Robert Bolick during a PBA Philippine Cup against Blackwater Bossing. –PBA IMAGES
Robert Bolick is liking what he’s seeing from NLEX in getting another victory in the Philippine Cup on Friday when the PBA paid a visit for the first time here in Montalban, Rizal.
“When my teammates get a sense of trust and belief from [coach Jong Uichico], they get an opportunity to shine,” Bolick said after leading the Road Warriors’ 80-72 win over the Blackwater Bossing at Ynares Center II, the newly built venue in this municipality.
The Road Warriors won for the third time in a row—after dropping their opening assignment—behind Bolick, who scored 10 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter to scuttle any hopes of a rally by the Bossing, who fought back despite the absence of rookie guard Sedrick Barefield.
JB Bahio, Kevin Alas and Dominick Fajardo also keyed the win that also raised NLEX’s standing to a share of second with idle San Miguel Beer.
The Road Warriors have started showing some sense of promise moving forward but Bolick knows the Road Warriors have plenty of tests to pass in the all-Filipino tournament, especially with a big stretch of games in the next two weeks.
NLEX plays Barangay Ginebra on Wednesday at Ninoy Aquino Stadium, followed by current leader Magnolia on May 11, at the same Manila venue, and defending champion Meralco on May 16 at PhilSports Arena in Pasig City.
“It’s too early to say, because we have three big games ahead which will size up what kind of character our team has,” Bolick said.
Alas contributed 10 points, six rebounds and three assists in 27 minutes, his longest exposure this conference after playing a total of 33 minutes or an average of 11 in the previous three games.
Hamstring problem
The veteran guard, now six months removed from returning from a third ACL injury, was used in the fourth, providing support while Bolick kept Blackwater at bay with several outside shots.
Fajardo also saw action in the payoff and added 10 points and four rebounds, while Bahio had 12 points, eight rebounds and three assists in another solid showing.
“Of course, if they’re playing well, they’ll get more minutes,” said NLEX coach Uichico. “That’s why Dom and JB were out there for most of the game, and we went small with Berto, Matt [Nieto] and Kevin. So those were the adjustments that we’ve made.”
Blackwater dropped to 1-3 while playing minus Barefield due to a hamstring problem and Christian David spraining his ankle three minutes into the ballgame at this new facility.
The PBA will also hold another doubleheader here on May 18.
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Grand Slam-seeking TNT was playing Phoenix at press time as it continued its search for a breakthrough win after a 0-2 start. If they do, the Tropang 5G will carry some momentum going into Sunday’s match with the Beermen at the original Ynares Center in Antipolo. INQ
