20 July 2016

Allen Durham Turns in Some Monster Numbers

Allen Durham
The Meralco Bolts concluded their two back-to-back games on a high note, two wins in two games.

Import Allen Durham entered the first game against Phoenix Petroleum Fuel Masters with high expectations in his wake, but reached another level in the first quarter alone.

The double-double specialist started things off with a mighty fast-break finish, in which he glided down the right side of the court, slid between a pair of defenders, and put in a layup – on the other side of the hoop – while crashing to the floor. Within the next few minutes, he hit at the top of the key three-point shop, drilled a tough jumper over Willie Wilson and presided the Bolts offense.

The Durham experience can be rocky. In the second half, he uncorked some weird decisions on his way to the basket, trying to drive at inopportune times. Once, he crossed over quickly enough that his defender fell (cool), but didn't come close on the resulting jumper (not cool).

Durham can show promise and a lack of awareness all at once, like when he zoomed in to yank a rebound away from an opponent, lost one defender with a back dribble in transition, and then missed what would have been a bonkers layup. But there's no doubt that he gives Meralco the floor leadership and the scoring leader that they badly needed.

Arriving exactly as advertised, Durham mixed obvious athleticism with raw abilities. With no big man threat, Durham put up 38 shots in two games and making 23 for 60.5 percent. He leads the Bolts in all departments by averaging 34.0 points, 18.5 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 2.00 steals and 1.00 blocks per game.

With the Bolts thin at the center, Durham should get a chance to develop on the court. And his defensive versatility gives him a chance at immediate minutes.

Everyone at the Bolts backyard are hoping that Mohammad Jamshidi will also give them some big numbers soon. After a promising first game where he scored 9.0 points, he failed to score in the second game. Fortunately, the locals step up.

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