Newly-acquired MAC Belo came through with a solid debut with the Meralco Bolts, and the team somehow kept the fire of their strong showing in the Clark bubble, pummeling the NorthPort Batang Pier, 85-63, on Day One of PBA Season 46 Philippine Cup at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig.
Belo led all scorers in the heavy triple bill as he wreaked havoc versus the NorthPort squad that's on an extended wait on the entry of giant trade acquisition Greg Slaughter.
The Bolts pounced on the opportunity, with Belo leading the way with a career-high 27 points that went with nine rebounds and three assists in just 29 minutes of action.
The former Gilas player, who spent the first four years of his pro career with Blackwater, struggled from the arc (1-of-6) but went almost unstoppable from the around the paint (10-of-12).
He had a career average of only 11.3 points before joining the Bolts.
Allein Maliksi fired 14 points off the bench and the rest had their contributions as the Bolts lived up to expectation as the favored team coming from their semifinal finish in the last all-Filipino tourney.
Coach Norman Black and his troops barely dropped a deciding Game Five against eventual champion Barangay Ginebra then.
Belo teamed up with Nard Pinto, Chris Newsome, Bong Quinto and Raymond Almazan in the starting unit that gave Meralco an early big advantage.
They took the first quarter at 18-9 and kept a hot pace in leading by as many as 25 points before completing the rout.
The Bolts were efficient and unforgiving on both ends, holding the Batang Pier to a miserable 20-percent clip. NorthPort shot just 11 percent in the opening canto.
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