NORTHPORT cruised to its third straight win and shored up its playoff drive in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup last Sunday, thanks to the superb outing of rookie William Navarro.
The Batang Pier rode on the career-best performance of the former Ateneo big man to claim the scalp of erstwhile red-hot Converge FiberXers with a 112-97 victory to crack the Top 5 entering the homestretch of the eliminations.
Navarro, playing in only his fifth game since agreeing to sign with his mother ballclub, captained Northport’s voyage to a big 15-point win behind his 29 points, 17 rebounds, nine assists, a steal, and a block for his best all-around showing yet.
The 6-foot-6 forward shot a crisp 11-of-14 from the field, including a 3-of-4 clip from downtown, to cap his near triple-double play.
The import-like numbers were more than enough to earn for Navarro the Cignal Play-PBA Press Corps Player of the Week for Nov. 16-20.
He became the third Player of the Week this conference for Northport after Arvin Tolentino and Robert Bolick. He beat Meralco’s Raymond Almazan and Terrafirma’s Juami Tiongson for the weekly honor being handed out by the group covering the PBA beat.
Navarro poured 21 points of his total output in the second half as Northport sailed away from a slim 52-49 cushion at the break to clinch a crucial win that steadied its playoff track.
With only a game left in their schedule, the Batang Pier are now in solo fifth spot with a 6-5 record to complete a turnaround after being down in the doldrums midway through the import-spiced tourney.
Navarro had his imprint all over that streak with overall averages of 17.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 3.8 assists in five games so far.
Northport’s win likewise snapped the seven-game winning streak of Converge, which played sans import Quincy Miller.
