Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Ismael Romero delivered a show the Cebu Coliseum won’t soon forget, powering the Meralco Bolts past the visiting Macau Black Bears, 92–74, in their East Asia Super League (EASL) Group B match last 15 November.
For a crowd still shaken by the recent earthquake and typhoon, the game offered a welcome break. Jefferson and Romero kept them on their feet with a string of dunks, alley-oops, and highlight plays that lifted the energy inside the arena.
The matchup also doubled as a fundraiser for typhoon relief efforts. Meralco improved to 2–2 in Group B, while the Black Bears absorbed a rough welcome in their first outing.
Romero also rewrote the East Asia Super League (EASL) home-and-away single-game record for rebounds. The Puerto Rican, one of the squad’s imports, dominated in the paint, finishing with 25 points and a whopping 28 rebounds in the victory, to go with two blocks and four assists.
The towering big man had 23 defensive rebounds and five offensive boards.
The 34-year-old Romero thus etched his name on top of the single-game record since the home-and-away format of the EASL started in 2023, better than the 22 boards set by Chiba Jets’ John Mooney in December 2023 and Meralco’s Akil Mitchell in November last year.
It is also better than the 23 rebound pulled down by Chiba’s Xavier Cooks in March 2024, when the Jets faced off against the New Taipei Kings at the Hoops Dome in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu in the semifinal of the 2023-24 EASL season.
"Well, somebody getting 28 rebounds doesn't happen very often in basketball, especially in the 35 minutes or wherever he played," Meralco head coach Nenad Vucinic told reporters after the game.
"He was dominating the boards. But also defensively he was playing well. Made some finishes and big baskets for us as well from the offensive rebounds. And from the dishes from other guys," he added.
Vucinic said that the lack of the Black Bears’ height, as well as the Bolts’ 3-of-17 clip from deep, also "helped" Romero’s record-setting performance.
"Macau is a little bit undersized. That helps as well. But that shouldn't take the credit away from Ismael for getting that number of rebounds. Of course, our poor shooting from the three-point line helped us get a few more offensive rebounds as well," the coach stressed.
"So Ismael was big for us. He definitely controlled the hoop and the basket for both ends."
Romero already had a double-double at the half, as he scored 13 markers and hauled down 14 boards after the first two quarters.
The duo of Romero and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson actually outrebounded the whole Macau squad 39-37.
Romero is currently leading the league in rebounds with 17.5 a contest.
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