MANILA -- NLEX secured a seat in the PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinals after subduing Blackwater, 93-90, at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue on Sunday night.
In a battle of teams with hot streaks, the Road Warriors outscored the Elite, 28-16, in the fourth quarter to spoil the latter's charge in the middle two quarters.
Kevin Alas dropped 25 points off the bench with eight rebounds, five assists, and one block, while Kiefer Ravena added 23 points, three rebounds, and three steals for NLEX, which tied Alaska in fourth place with its fourth straight win.
Mike Digregorio made 16 markers and two rebounds for Blackwater, which now needs to beat Phoenix on Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum to stay alive in the playoff race.
Speaking of staying alive, Meralco kept its own playoff hopes afloat with an 84-82 shocker over Ginebra in their highly-anticipated Governors' Cup Finals rematch.
Jason Ballesteros scored the game-winning basket with 36 seconds left as the Bolts, who seemed to be on the outs a few days ago, have now won two straight games to tie the Elite and the TNT KaTropa for ninth place at 4-6, a half-game behind the GlobalPort Batang Pier and the Phoenix Fuel Masters.
Ballesteros, however, still kept the door open for the Barangay as he only made a split from the line in the next Bolts play, leading to a chance from Japeth Aguilar to steal the win. Aguilar, however, misfired his three-point attempt as time expired.
Garvo Lanete made 19 markers, two boards, one assist, and three steals for Meralco, which will play Magnolia on Saturday night at the Xavier University Gym in Cagayan De Oro City for its last elimination round assignment.
Aguilar had 20 points, seven caroms, and three dimes, while Scottie Thompson added 17 points, 13 rebounds, and five assists for Ginebra, which will battle Rain Or Shine on March 2 for its own preliminary finale. (PNA)
