MANILA, Philippines — NLEX grabbed the No. 1 spot with a whopping win as the Road Warriors destroyed Zambales M-Builders with a record 64-point margin, 125-61, on the final day of eliminations Thursday in the PBA D-League Aspirants Cup at Filoil Flying V Arena.
“The No. 1 spot was given to us on a silver platter,” coach Boyet Fernandez said after his Road Warriors set the biggest winning margin in league history. “We were no longer expecting to get No. 1. We came into the game just thinking to finish the eliminations with a win.”
The Road Warriors unseated the Big Chill Superchargers, who had a chance to keep the top spot but blew a double-digit advantage in their upset loss to Hog’s Breath Cafe, 84-68, in the first game.
Both NLEX and Big Chill finished with similar 11-2 cards, but the Road Warriors clinched the top seed due to a superior quotient.
The Road Warriors and the Superchargers booked automatic semifinal slots for finishing in the top two.
Borgie Hermida had 18 points against Zambales, which only had eight players and a skeletal team staff reportedly due to salary woes, to help NLEX surpass the 52-point winning margin Maynilad set over Junior Powerade, 119-67, in 2011.
The scores:
First Game
HOG’S BREATH CAFE 84—Rios 18, Paniamogan 10, Belorio 10, Terso 9, Racal 8, Sanga 17, Publico 6, Gabawan 6, Allera 5, Macasaet 3, Ruaya 2, Austria 0, Robles 0.
BIG CHILL 68—Cervantes 17, Brondial 14, Maiquez 12, Lozada 6, Heruela 5, Canlas 4, Mirza 3, Belleza 3, Villahermosa 3, Apinan 1, Santos 0, Miranda 0.
Quarters: 13-12, 24-25, 49-57, 84-68
Second Game
NLEX 125—Hermida 18, Ganuelas 17, J. Pascual 17, R. Pascual 15, Alas 14, Adeogun 11, Dela Rosa 9, Dela Cruz 8, Raymundo 6, Koga 4, K. Pascual 4, Amer 2.
ZAMBALES M-BUILDERS 61—Cruz 16, Alabanza 9, Saret 9, Semerad 8, Ignacio 8, Maniago 6, Doligon 3, Vidal 2.
Quarters: 25-17, 54-22, 85-37, 125-61
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