“SMALL” BLAKELY POWERS PUREFOODS PAST GLOBALPORT

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Marqus Blakely served well playing as Purefoods’ interim import, leading the Hotshots to a triumphant debut in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup.

Blakely started the game swatting away the first field goal attempt of GlobalPort import CJ Leslie, and the one-time Governors’ Cup Best Import awardee went on to dominate the game, powering the Hotshots to an 83-70 win over the Batang Pier at the Cuneta Astrodome Friday night.

The former Vermont U standout, only a little over 6-foot-4, proved he’s capable of matching up against a taller rival, coming through with a remarkable near triple-double job to get Purefoods back on the winning track after being eliminated in the quarterfinal round of the recent Philippine Cup.

Though at least three inches shorter, Blakely showed up Leslie, delivering game highs of 26 points, 18 rebounds and seven blocks in 36 minutes of action.

“Marcus comes in like a warm blanket for us. We know what to do with him and I think it’s kind of an advantage for us,” said Purefoods coach Tim Cone.

“He plays like a 6’9” in terms of rebounding. He had seven blocks and that shows what kind of a person, an athlete he is,” Cone also said.

Purefoods’ real import prospect Daniel Orton is to arrive in the country Sunday. It is still uncertain though who Cone will play in their next game against NLEX on Tuesday with the kind of game displayed by Blakely against GlobalPort.

Blakely stood as a tremendous force both on offense and defense for the Hotshots versus the Batang Pier.

“We got back to being a tough defensive team and we were able to sustain our defense,” said Cone, whose team held GlobalPort to 70 points after making 100 in a winning conference debut against Kia last Tuesday.

Leslie was neutralized, limited to 25 points and nine rebounds after erupting for 31 markers and 14 boards against the Carnival.

There were reports though that Leslie got drained in his PBA debut and he needed to be hospitalized.

Versus Blakely, Leslie had a fine start but ran out of energy – evident with hamstring cramps that he endured in the second half.

As the Batang Pier slowed down in the second half, the Hotshots took advantage of the situation and won the game pulling away.

The two teams engaged in a nip-and-tuck battle early on with GlobalPort seizing the lead for the last time at 42-41 on a 6-0 start in the second half.

The Hotshots, however, fought back with 16 unanswered points and roared on to deny the Batang Pier a 2-0 start in the tourney.

Mark Barroca and Alex Mallari played key roles in their second-half breakaway, and the backcourt partners finished with 11 and 10 points, respectively.

PJ Simon missed the game due to health reasons.

Marc Pingris was also supposed sit out the game but still came out to play 19 minutes and contributed six points and the same number of rebounds.

“He (Ping) came up to me and said ‘coach can I try it’ and I told him ‘okay I’ll bring you off the bench,’” said Cone. “He’s one of the best in guarding imports. It’s nice to have him back.” (SB)

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