Mac Belo shines in debut as Blackwater buries Phoenix

Rookie Mac Belo scored 17 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead the Blackwater Elite past the Phoenix Fuelmasters, 94-87, on Wednesday in the Philippine Cup.

Blackwater's choice among Gilas Pilipinas prospects in the special draft, Belo shot 7-of-9 from the field in his first PBA game.

Art Dela Cruz added 12 points and 10 rebound as a starter, while Denok Miranda and Dylan Ababou led the bench with 11 and nine points, respectively, for Phoenix.

The Elite led by nine at the 6:41 mark of the fourth, before Phoenix managed to trim the lead to four with 43 ticks remaining. Free throws from Nard Pino and Belo stretched the lead to seven anew in the final minute, putting the game away.

Simon Enciso paced Phoenix with 25 points, while JC Intal and Willie Wilson tallied 12 and 10 points. Wilson also added 14 boards, while rookie Gelo Alolino provided quality minutes, hitting 11 points in less than 14 minutes in the floor. —JST, GMA News