MANILA, Philippines — NLEX stayed unbeaten in the PBA Governors’ Cup after routing San Miguel Beer, 110-96, on Sunday, giving rookie coach Jimmy Alapag his fourth straight victory and the solo lead in Group A.
The Road Warriors set the tone early with a fast-paced attack, building a 25-point lead behind import DaQuan Jones, Schonny Winston, Robert Bolick, Tony Semerad and Enoch Valdez. They withstood San Miguel’s second-half comeback attempts to improve to 4-0.
“I think anytime you play a team like San Miguel, with all their championship experience, it’s always a great test for a young team,” Alapag said after the win.
NLEX responded to a rally led by Don Trollano, with Alapag praising his team’s composure.
“I thought we were very resilient, especially in the second half,” he said. “We were able to get stops and score when we needed to, to get the win.”
Jones finished with 27 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks, while Winston added 24 points, four rebounds, four assists and three steals. Semerad scored 15 points on five three-pointers, and Bolick nearly posted a triple-double with 14 points, nine rebounds and 12 assists.
San Miguel dropped to 3-1 despite 31 points from import George King. Trollano scored 16 points, while June Mar Fajardo added 15.
Coach Leo Austria returned after missing the Beermen’s first three games because of illness but remained behind the bench as assistant coach Peter Martin handled coaching duties.
