Teamwork made the dream work for Meralco.
The Meralco Bolts were taken to the hilt by the Magnolia Hotshots on Wednesday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
But someway, somehow, they overcame the Hotshots’ fierce challenge, climbing back from 10 points down in the fourth quarter to send the game to overtime. They then finished the job in extra time, making all the big shots to edge out Magnolia and move on to a semis date with the TNT Tropang Giga.
After the game, a visibly relieved Norman Black pointed out one big key to the Bolts overcoming the Hotshots: a balanced offensive attack.
“The balance is very important. Everybody gets involved offensively. KJ [McDaniels] is not the type of guy that’s gonna score 45, 50 points a night, but he will give you 25 to 30,” Black explained. “So, we need the other locals to step in and contribute. Luckily for us tonight, we got a lot of guys that were heroes led by [Chris] Newsome.”
Newsome was certainly awesome, finishing with 33 points, 11 rebounds, and 7 assists. But he was no one man show. McDaniels gave Meralco 27 markers on top of 10 boards. Aaron Black chipped in 16 points and 12 caroms, and hit the buzzer beater that sent the game to overtime. Chris Banchero contributed 16 off the bench, while Allein Maliksi and Raymond Almazon scored 9 and 7 points, respectively.
That type of balanced attack is exactly what Black will be looking for if Meralco is to get past TNT and book a seat in the Finals. Actually, Black believes it is the key for every team looking to advance.
“That’s what it takes this time of the season,” Black said. “You really have to have everybody contribute if you want to move on in the playoffs.”
It got Meralco through to the semis. Maybe it really is the key.