Pilipinas Super League: San Juan routs NKT; Nueva Ecija edges Caloocan

MANILA, Philippines – San Juan carved out another lopsided victory by whipping NKT Snipers while Nueva Ecija outplayed Caloocan as the title favorites kept their unblemished mark in the PSL President’s Cup late Wednesday night at the Filoil-EcoOil Centre in San Juan.

The Kings, who are being coached by Sen. Jinggoy Estrada, ran roughshod over the Snipers, 109-85, as the home team hit a total of 14 3-point shots, five of those coming from former National University player John Galinato.

Galinato made all but two attempts from beyond the arc to lead the way for the Kings’ rampaging start and end up with 19 points.

While Galinato took care of the offensive sock for San Juan, Mike Malonzo came away with a double-double performance of 16 points and 11 rebounds.

AC Soberano, who was just a year removed playing for NLEX in the PBA, came off the bench and produced 15 points while  Zach Huang contributed 11 and Orlan Wamar and Agem Miranda each tallied 10 for San Juan, which drew double-digit production from six players.

The Kings improved their win-loss record to 2-0.

Nueva Ecija added the previously unbeaten Caloocan to its growing list of victims after posting a 76-63 triumph in the other game.

The Capitals flexed their muscles in the shaded lane as they grabbed 51 rebounds, 21 points more than their rivals.

That resulted to 17 second-chance points for the Bong Cuevas-owned Nueva Ecija squad.

Nueva Ecija also used its roster depth, drawing 65 points from its second unit as compared to Caloocan’s 39.

Pacing the Capitals’ balance scoring was Rob Celiz, who finished with a double-double production of 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Billy Robles hit all of his four shots from the field and contributed 11 points for Nueva Ecija, which extended its winning streak to four and improve to 4-0.