PBA: Purefoods lean on Blakely, Mallari to defeat NLEX

Marqus Blakely had 29 points and 18 rebounds, while Alex Mallari chipped in 15 off the bench as the Purefoods Star Hotshots bucked the poor shooting of their main men to earn an 89-85 win over the NLEX Road Warriors on Saturday at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.

Blakely aside, the rest of Purefoods' starters struggled from the field, firing just 10 of 36. Marc Pingris had eight points while James Yap and Joe Devance added seven each. PJ Simon was limited to four.

"We're not playing the way we should be. But we should be better as we get along," said Purefoods coach Tim Cone. "It's been a struggle for us. I dont think we're doing good since winning the grandslam."

The multi-titled coach was very positive of his team's fortunes moving forward:

"But we should start picking it up. The desire, the hunger. Other teams are playing better that we are. This team know what it takes to be on top, they just have to figure out how."

Kwame Alexander had 25 points and 26 boards for NLEX, while Jonas Villanueva added 14 points and seven assists. No other Road Warrior scored in double figures with Mark Cardona and Mark Borboran chipping in nine and eight, respectively. - GMA News

The scores:

Purefoods 89 -- Blakely 29, Mallari 15, Barroca 9, Pingris 8, Yap 7, Maliksi 7, Devance 7, Simon 4, Reavis 3, Pennis 0.

NLEX 85 -- Alexander 25; Villanueva 14, Cardona 9, Borboran 8, Madanly 8, Canaleta 6, Taulava 6, E. Villanueva 4, Raymundo 2, Ramos 2, Lingganay 1, Apinan 0.

Quarters: 17-13; 41-41; 56-58; 89-85