By JAY R. GOTERA
MANILA — Import Ricardo Ratliffe made a huge splash in his PBA return, pouring out 32 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Star Hotshots to an emphatic 108-90 victory over the Meralco Bolts in the Commissioner’s Cup Wednesday night.
The Hotshots thus grabbed the solo leadership of the conference with their eighth win in 10 games as they moved closer to a Top Two finish. To achieve this, Star needs to win its last elimination round game against Alaska on May 31 and hope that neither San Miguel Beer nor Barangay Ginebra, their closest pursuers both at 6-2, won’t be able to win nine games. In case the three teams end up tied at 9-2, Star would only place third because of inferior quotient.
Meralco suffered a second straight loss and third overall in 10 games.
Ratliffe was again the anchor down low, tallying 32 points and 13 boards for the Hotshots, who won for the eighth time in 10 games to break a tie with their victims, who fell to a 7-3 win-loss record.
All four of Star’s guards scored in double digits with Paul Lee producing 16 points, four assists, two boards, and ones steal, while Mark Barroca had 12 points, four assists, and two rebounds.
Allein Maliksi and Jio Jalalon, both members of the Gilas team that just won the SEABA championship, added 11 and 10 markers, respectively.
The Hotshots led by as many as 21 points, 98-77, after a scorching 17-2 run to start the fourth period.
Chris Newsome paced Meralco with 25 points, eight assists, seven boards, and three steals. Kelly Nabong added 17 points while Jared Dillinger chipped in 15 markers.
However, import Alex Stephenson was held to just 9 points on 4-of-7 shooting and only 9 rebounds in over 31 minutes. He also had 6 turnovers.
NLEX 100, Alaska 92
The NLEX Road Warriors finally snapped a nine-game losing streak, turning the tables on the suddenly skidding Alaska Aces, 100-92.
It was actually the first victory in 13 games for NLEX going back to the last conference.
The Road Warriors won the game in stunning fashion—climbing from a 20-point hole and fighting a ferocious Alaska comeback bid in the endgame without an import, with Wayne Chism fouling out with 5:20 left in the game.
Kevin Alas and Rabeh Al-Hussaini led the local crew in the endgame in the absence of import Wayne Chism, who fouled out with 5:20 left in the game after picking up back-to-back fouls.
Chism top-scored for NLEX with 22 points along with six boards in just 28 minutes.
New recruits Juami Tiongson and JR Quinahan led the locals with 16 points apiece while Kevin Alas added 11.
Alaska suffered a fifth straight loss after winning its first four games, undermining its playoff hopes.
For a while though, it looked like the Aces were on the road to snapping their losing streak as they built a 35-15 lead late in the first quarter, which they even padded to 33-13.
But Alaska inexplicably lost steam in the second half, allowing NLEX to catch up before surging ahead.
The Aces also suffered a second half meltdown in their last game against TNT last Saturday. In that game, they erected a 17-point lead only to collapse in the second half.
Import Cory Jefferson led Alaska with a huge double-double of 36 points and 20 boards, plus three blocks that all meant nothing in the end. Vic Manuel finished with 17 markers while Calvin Abueva and Jvee Casio added 12 and 10, respectively.
Games Friday: GlobalPort Batang Pier (3-6) vs. Rain or Shine Elasto Painters (5-4) and Barangay Ginebra Kings (6-2) vs. Blackwater Elite (2-7).
