NLEX Road Warriors’ JB Bahio during a PBA Philippine Cup game against TNT Tropang 5G. –PBA IMAGES
NLEX spoiled the 2025 PBA Philippine Cup debut of Grand Slam-seeking TNT with a 91-74 victory on Wednesday at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Road Warriors improved to 2-1 with back-to-back victories behind another good showing from rookies Xyrus Torres and JB Bahio as they gave the Tropang 5G a rough start to their quest to complete a rare triple crown.
Torres scored 13 while Bahio had the same amount of points with 12 rebounds and four assists.
Both Torres and Bahio enabled the ease off some pressure from main man Robert Bolick.
Bolick went 4-of-18 from the field despite also getting 13 points but added eight rebounds, six assists and four steals for NLEX.
NLEX led by a high of 22 and was hardly threatened by a TNT side that was 25 days removed from winning its second straight championship by beating Barangay Ginebra in the deciding Game 7 of the Commissioner’s Cup Finals.
TNT did cut the margin to six in the third quarter, before NLEX pulled away anew.
RR Pogoy and Kelly Williams were the only Tropang 5G players in double figures with 12 and 11 points, respectively.
Commissioner’s Cup Finals Most Valuable Player Rey Nambatac added nine points and three rebounds while Simon Enciso produced nine as well on top of six rebounds and two assists in his TNT debut.
TNT hopes to bounce back on Sunday when it takes on Converge at Ynares Center in Antipolo City.
NLEX, meanwhile, takes a nine-day break before returning to action on May 2 against Blackwater in the league’s first-ever doubleheader in Montalban, Rizal where a newer Ynares Center was built.
