Rakocevic posts 36-15, tows Magnolia past NLEX to stay perfect in four games

Reinforcement Nick Rakocevic posted 36 points and 15 rebounds to tow the Magnolia Hotshots Pambansang Manok past the NLEX Road Warriors, 111-97, on Wednesday in the 2022 PBA Commissioner's Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

It was a wire-to-wire win for Magnolia, who led by 22 points in two instances early in the fourth period.

Aside from Rakocevic, Jio Jalalon added 18 points on top of his eight boards and five dimes, while Mark Barroca chipped in 16 points. Calvin Abueva was effective on defense as he made 10 boards aside from his three-point, two-assist output.

Both Kevin Alas and Justin Chua had 16 points and six rebounds each for NLEX, while import Earl Clark had 15 points and 10 rebounds.

Magnolia (4-0) will try to extend their winning streak on Sunday when they play NorthPort, while NLEX (2-2) will try to return to the win column when they face TNT on Wednesday.

The scores:

Magnolia 111 – Rakocevic 36, Jalalon 18, Barroca 16, Lee 9, Dionisio 8, Corpuz 8, Ahanmisi 4, Reavis 3, Abueva 3, Wong 2, Zaldivar 2, Laput 2, Mendoza 0, Escoto 0.

NLEX 97 – Alas 16, Chua 16, Clark 15, Ganuelas-Rosser 15, Trollano 12, Nieto 7, Fonacier 6, Ighalo 6, Varilla 3, Miranda 1, Celda 0.

Quarters: 34-23, 58-48, 86-65, 111-97

—JMB, GMA News