PENANG, Malaysia—Blackwater moved within a win of clinching the 2016 Penang Chief Minister Cup championship after blowing past past Karnataka State-India, 113-70, on Monday at the Han Chiang Indoor Stadium here.
The Elite were relentless from the get-go, relying on their full-court pressure defense that forced the Indians to fall into a series of turnovers.
The Dioceldo Sy-owned Philippine Basketball Association squad held Karnataka State to just two field goals in a six-minute stretch in the second quarter to turn a slim two-point lead to a 50-30 bubble late in the first half.
Blackwater collected 31 points off India’s 24 turnovers, while overwhelming its opponent with its 66 bench points to improve to a tournament-best 4-0 card.
The Elite only need to beat host Malaysia Dragons on Tuesday afternoon to capture the championship in Malaysia’s top tourist destination.
The Dragons (3-0), who ruled the 2016 ASEAN Basketball League last March, were playing Zhejiang Chouzhou Commercial Bank-China (2-1) at presstime.
“Sabi ko nga sa kanila kanina, wala akong pakialam kung ano ang mangyari sa game between Malaysia and China. I want them to win the game tomorrow so we can complete our goal of sweeping the tournament and prepare well for the next conference sa PBA,” Blackwater coach Leo Isaac said after the game.
Big man JP Erram led 21 points and 7 rebounds, Carlo Lastimosa added 19 points, while Jason Melano came off the bench and chipped in 15.
The Elite are coming off a huge 77-75 win over tournament-favorite Zhejiang Chouzhou Commercial Bank-China on Sunday in a virtual championship match behind rookie Roi Sumang’s game-clinching triple with less than a second left.
Blackwater is using the Penang trip as part of its buildup for the PBA’s season-ending Governors Cup.
The scores:
Blackwater 113– Erram 21, Lastimosa 19, Melano 15, Vosotros 10, Gamalinda 8, Sena 8, Tiongosn 7, Sumang 7, Cervantes 6, Bulawan 6, Golla 4, Reyes 2.
Karnataka State-India 70 – Annadorai 24, Abhishek 10, Aravind 8, Rajesh 8, Akhilan 7, Shivrahkumar 6, Chethan 3, Mofeez 2, Roby 2, Prajinal 0.
Quarters: 26-22, 54-37, 88-51, 113-70.
