NLEX Road Warriors’ Robert Bolick in action during a PBA Philippine CUp game against Converge FiberXers. –PBA IMAGES
NLEX coach Jong Uichico gave Robert Bolick a huge tap on the shoulder in a show of appreciation, minutes after his prized guard saved the team’s day.
“It’s always a luxury to have a Robert Bolick on your team,” Uichico said before flashing a wide grin after the Road Warriors climbed to the share of the lead in the PBA Philippine Cup on Friday.
Bolick’s pair of clutch shots eventually sealed an 88-83 victory over the Converge FiberXers, who almost turned things around after nibbling away at an 18-point NLEX lead at Philsports Arena in Pasig City.
A 3-pointer and a tough fadeaway shot gave NLEX 8-point leads in separate instances, enough to prevent Converge from completing its comeback as the Road Warriors sustained their remarkable run with their sixth straight win to tie Magnolia.
The Hotshots, whose game run was snapped by Rain or Shine last week, can regain the solo lead with a win Saturday against struggling NorthPort in Candon, Ilocos Sur.
“When it’s nitty-gritty time, you know you can trust Robert to make the right decisions,” Uichico said of Bolick, who wound up with 19 points, seven rebounds and 10 assists.
In his usual self, Bolick deflected much of the credit to his teammates for also making the right reads and the timely contributions.
Rookie Xyrus Torres scored 18, Javee Mocon had 10 points and seven rebounds while veteran Tony Semerad, another neophyte in JB Bahio and Dom Fajardo also provided the intangibles for the Road Warriors.
Bolick pointed out how Semerad and Bahio were able to hold their own against Converge’s twin tower combo of Justine Baltazar and Justin Arana despite allowing both to have a double-doubles.
“Those twin towers are really strong, but our own bigs are the reason why we are now 6-1,” said Bolick.
The Road Warriors crept closer to the quarterfinals with the win, and more importantly, are in target in getting the top four spot and a twice-to-beat advantage.
But NLEX acknowledges the need to be cautious as its next challenge is another formidable one and it comes on Sunday in the form of the defending champion Meralco Bolts.
“It’s a good thing that we’re able to experience these kinds of games and show that we can play with composure,” Bolick said.
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Baltazar’s 21 points and 10 rebounds and Arana’s 12 points and 12 rebounds were not enough to save the FiberXers from slipping to seventh at 5-4 with two games left.
