MANILA — In a battle between two undefeated teams, the Meralco Bolts proved to be the steadier one as they repulsed the defending champions Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, 89-83, in the 2017 PBA Commissioner's Cup Wednesday night. The Bolts thus remained undefeated in four games as they grabbed solo leadership in the standings. The loss was the Painters' first also in four games. Import Alex Stepheson paced Meralco with 21 points and 15 rebounds. He found plenty of support from sophomore guard Baser Amer who tallied 17 points, 11 rebounds and six assists. The Bolts led by as many as 13 points and were still up, 85-76, with just 1:41 remaining. The Painters then came up with a 7-0 blast to cut the Bolts' lead to just 85-83, with 40 seconds left. But Stepheson scored on a nifty assist pass from Amer to give Meralco a four-point lead. ROS import Shawn Taggart then missed a three-pointer, sealing his team's doom. Meralco's Chris Newsome nailed two free throws for the final score. Taggart led the Painters with 27 points and 13 boards. Alaska 98, Mahindra 92 The Alaska Aces thrashed the Mahindra Floodbuster, 98-92, to remain undefeated in three games. The Aces led from start to finish, never giving the Floodbuster any opportunity to mount a serious challenge. Import Cory Jefferson carried the brunt of the scoring load for the Aces, finishing with 30 points and 11 rebounds. Calvin Abueva added 17 markers and six boards in just 24 minutes off the bench. Sonny Thoss chipped in 11 points, six of them in a 10-0 Alaska run late in the final quarter that gave the Aces a 15-point lead that was just too much for Mahindra to overhaul. Import James White scored a team-high 30 points for Mahindra, which fell to its third loss in four games. White also posted 14 rebounds, three blocks, and one steal, but found little local support. Mark Yee added 13 markers, LA Revilla, 12 while Gary David chipped in 10. Alex Mallari, Mahindra's leading scorer, was held to just seven points in just nine attempts in 23 minutes. Canaleta goes to Blackwater The Blackwater Elite acquired the services of veteran gunner KG Canaleta from GlobalPort in a two-team, three-player trade approved Wednesday. In return the Elite sent seldom used forwards Dylan Ababou and James Forrester to the Batang Pier. Canaleta brings added height and firepower to the Elite, which has lost star forward Art dela Cruz due to a ruptured Achilles. Blackwater also faces the loss of star rookie Mac Belo who reportedly suffered a knee injury. Canaleta has averaged 11.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists this season in the 13 games he played for the Batang Pier. Blackwater still has to break into the win column after three games. Games Friday: Blackwater Elite vs. TNT KaTropa Texters and NLEX Road Warriors vs. Star Hotshots.
