Alaska opens PBA season with convincing win vs Blackwater

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The Alaska Aces opened their PBA Season 46 campaign with a bang after man-handling the Blackwater Bossing, 103-77.

Alaska’s newly formed squad with the addition of Gab Banal and Yousef Taha looked convincing as the duo was unstoppable on the hardwood.

The former MPBL MVP recorded eight points in his debut with the Aces and showed flashes of brilliance with his playmaking.

Meanwhile, Taha went all out and dominated the paint after scoring 16 huge points and pulled seven boards with his new team.

It was a rough first half for the Aces as they committed a bunch of turnovers and were still feeling each other out on the court.

Simon Enciso’s consistent three-point shooting kept Blackwater in the game and even helped them grab the lead numerous times in the second quarter.

However, soon as the second half began, the Aces immediately caught fire courtesy of Mike DiGregorio’s hot shooting from the field.

The savvy veteran erupted for 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting and was the one who shone the most in the last two quarters.

On the other hand, the revamped Blackwater team had a decent first half but struggled defensively and let Alaska blow the game wide-open in the second half.