Look who’s in the driver’s seat

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THERE was a stretch in the first half last night when Blackwater fielded Mike DiGregorio, RK Ilagan, Tyrus Hill, and Bradwyn Guinto at the same time against their former team, Converge.

The big difference aside from the four now suiting up for a different team? The Bossing are fast proving they have what it takes, while the FiberXers’ play leaves much to be desired.

Working behind a balanced attack, Blackwater ripped Converge 90-78 for its third straight win and the early solo lead in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

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Bossing guard Rey Suerte boomed in a three-pointer that gave the team its biggest lead 70-35 at the 6:50 mark of the third quarter, sparking a celebration on the Blackwater sidelines.

On the opposite bench, there were long and forlorn looks on the faces of the FiberXers, their body language seemingly those of boxers who suffered vicious knockouts.

Coach Jeffrey Cariaso’s squad remained unscathed early in the season-ending conference after scoring a fitting encore to a surprising 87-76 triumph over TNT five days ago.

Converge fell to 0-3, including a 104-112 overtime loss to NorthPort last Sunday. The FiberXers finished the last Commissioner’s Cup dead-last with a 1-10 slate.

Last night Blackwater’s defensive ploy on how to contain Converge’s Mutt-and-Jeff combo of Alec Stockton and Justin Arana worked wonders and Cariaso took care of business.

“To me, the focus on defense was really something I’m really happy about with regards to our execution tonight,” Cariaso said. “We came in with the game plan on how we wanted to defend Justin and like what I said, he’s hard to cover.

“We knew it’s important that we defend him well and Alec, I think, is playing his career best right now. He’s patient, he’s taking his time. I call him pesky and persistent.

“Now that he’s developing his outside shots and being more consistent, he’s becoming a more phenomenal player. So, every game, there are guys like them in every team. We had a game plan on how to defend and tonight I’m happy with the way we came and defended those two,” he added.

Big man and this year’s second pick Christian David shone for the Bossing with 16 points and five rebounds, while Suerte complemented him with 14 markers and four boards.

Ilagan and Richard Escoto also had 12 points each, while Troy Rosario added 10 markers for Blackwater.

The Bossing raced to a 58-29 lead at the half and were still in command 76-50 going into the payoff period.

The FiberXers pulled to within 12 points but that pegged the final count in the last 14 seconds.

Stockton paced Converge with 24 points, eight caroms, and four assists, while Schonny Winston added 22 and seven.

Arana also contributed 18 markers for the FiberXers.

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