Rookie hotshot

Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

Robert Bolick made quite a good first impression in his PBA debut after leading NorthPort’s rout of Blackwater, 117-91, in the 2019 PBA Philippine Cup on Wednesday at Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Bolick, the third overall pick in last month’s draft, wasted no time in announcing his arrival in the pros, scoring 10 of his game-high 26 points in the first six minutes of the game.

“He (Bolick) really complements the team,” said NorthPort head coach Pido Jarencio in Filipino.

“He’s made for the PBA. He’s a winner and coachable; he listens,” Jarencio added.

The former San Beda ace hardly missed as he hit 10 of his 12 attempts from the field.

Paolo Taha added a career-high 21 points while Sean Anthony and Stanley Pringle, who is coming off his best PBA season where he finished second in the MVP race behind five-time winner June Mar Fajardo, had 19 and 16 points, respectively.

But Pringle’s biggest achievement may have been giving Bolick the confidence to settle into his game.

“He’s a scoring champion and an MVP type of player but he’s very humble and simple. He keeps telling me to ‘just play your game,’” said Bolick.

“We want to surpass our performance in each of the three conferences this season,” said Jarencio, whose squad wound up second to the last in the standings last conference with a 2-9 mark.

Another rookie in Abu Tratter, who was the seventh pick by NLEX before being traded to Blackwater along with Paul Desiderio in exchange for talented big man Poy Erram in the offseason, showed up with team-highs 18 points and nine rebounds.

But the Elite had no answer for the firepower flashed by the Batang Pier, who moved Bolick to the point to allow Pringle the freedom to look for his shots.

In the second game, Phoenix survived Meralco in overtime, 93-92, behind superb play by Justin Chua, who finished with a game-high 24 points.

Meanwhile, San Miguel Beer gets to unveil its souped-up roster when it battles Columbian Dyip on Friday.

The two teams tangle at 4:30 p.m. at Cuneta Astrodome with the Dyip all set to unveil top overall pick CJ Perez.

Terrence Romeo will make his debut in a San Miguel Beer uniform, adding depth to an already potent Beermen roster.