Barangay Ginebra resident impport Justin Brownlee finally made his keenly awaited debut for rival team Meralco in the East Asia Super League (EASL) last 6 December.
Brownlee had a triumphant first game for the Bolts, helping his team nip the Macau Black Bears, 93-91, at The Capital Arena in Ilagan, Isabela.
The 37-year-old forward, who missed Meralco’s first four games in the EASL due to pneumonia, had 12 points, 10 rebounds and six assists.
With the win, Meralco improved to 3-2 for second place in Group B just behind the Taoyuan Pilots (2-1).
Cuban-Puerto Rican reinforcement Ismael Romero topscored for the Bolts with a double-double of 24 points and 17 rebounds while Iranian import Sina Vahedi caught fire with 23 points.
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson also did a little bit of everything for Meralco with 15 points, four rebounds and seven assists. However, he had to leave the game midway in the second half due to a possible ankle sprain. This gave the Black Bears an opening to rally from as many as a 64-44 deficit and within a single possession in the final four seconds.
Later, Phoenix Shackleford’s inbound pass to Sam Deguara was a bit too strong for the 7-foot-6 import, leading to an Ismael Romero steal to seal the win for the Bolts.
Meralco won’t be back in the EASL until 11 February against B.League powerhouse Ryukyu Golden Kings.
Macau dropped to 0-2 despite drawing a combined 74 points from Omari Peek-Green, Damian Chongqi and Phoenix Shackelford.
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