Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines—NLEX finally won one in the 2019 PBA Commissioner’s Cup, breaking away from Meralco early before holding off the Bolts for a 100-91 win at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay that kept the Road Warriors mathematically in the hunt for a playoff berth.
Import Tony Mitchell scored 32 points and had 19 rebounds in leading the Road Warriors to just their first win in seven games, with NLEX needing to win its last four games to even entertain thoughts of marching on.
The loss was the third straight for the Bolts, who trailed by as large as 23 points late in the third quarter and came within four heading into the final five minutes. Meralco, though, lost steam when Mitchell scored five straight points to snuff out the rally.
Jericho Cruz came off the bench to shoot 16 points for the Road Warriors.