PBA: Purefoods drubs NLEX in Orton’s debut

Purefood’s new import Daniel Orton bang bodies with NLEX big man Asi Taulava. PBA Images/Nuki Sabio

MANILA, Philippines — Import Daniel Orton made his debut and Purefoods Star eased past NLEX, 87-62, for their fourth straight win in the 2015 PBA Commissioner’s Cup Wednesday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Orton seemed to be a tailor-fit for the Hotshots, who shut down the Road Warriors to just six points in the second quarter on just 1-of-20 shooting from the field. The 6-foot-9  Orton had 16 points, 12 rebounds, three assists and three blocks.

“Marqus is such a monster for us and he has given us so much energy. I think that they had a really developed a good habit having Marqus around and it carried over tonight,” said Purefoods head coach Tim Cone, referring to the highly-energetic Marqus Blakely, whom first-choice Orton replaced after three games.

“Daniel played with great energy too. He’s a big man and he runs the floor well so he is big and quick which is quite unusual,” Cone said of the former first round pick by the Orlando Magic in the 2010 NBA Draft.

Mark Barroca led Purefoods, which joined Meralco as the early leaders at 4-0, with 17 points including 10 points in the third quarter where the Hotshots poured in 30 points and took a 65-45 lead.

Nino Canaleta scored 13 points for the misfiring Road Warriors, who shot just 29% from the field and dropped to 0-3. NLEX import Al Thornton shot poorly from the field en route to an 11-point outing after unleashing 39 points in his previous game against Alaska.

Cone also said that it was a “tough decision” to replace Blakely, who will be back for Purefoods in the next conference.

But with Orton’s size – taller than Blakely by five inches and definitely bigger – and how he easily fits into Purefoods’ system made Cone’s choice the right one so far.