Blackwater finally broke into the win column of the 2025 PBA Philippine Cup after overwhelming NorthPort, 120-98, behind a furious third quarter blitz at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Friday, April 25.

Despite being blanked in the first quarter, Sedrick Barefield came alive to lead the Bossing with 20 points, steering a balanced attack that saw six players score in double figures. The turning point came in the penultimate period, where Blackwater unleashed a searing 40-27 run to turn a slim one-point halftime lead into a commanding 88-74 cushion.

NorthPort’s defense failed to contain Blackwater’s offensive momentum in the second half. The Batang Pier trailed by as much as 27 points, including an 82-109 deficit late in the game, en route to a second straight defeat that dropped them to a 1-2 record—tied with the now 1-2 Bossing.

The victory was a welcome response for coach Jeffrey Cariaso’s squad, who absorbed a lopsided 80-111 loss to Converge on April 13. Cariaso credited the team’s preparation during their long break for the bounce-back win.

“Because we got our butts kicked a bit in the first two games, we wanted to take advantage of the 12 days in-between games,” Cariaso said. “It wasn’t perfect at practice, but the guys never stopped working hard.”

Christian David rebounded from early scoring woes to chip in 19 points, while RK Ilagan added 17. Richard Escoto, BJ Andrade, and Troy Mallilin each scored 10 to lead Blackwater’s 60-29 advantage in bench points. The team also tallied 24 assists, which Cariaso emphasized as a key to the win.

“When you share the ball, move the ball, good things happen,” said Cariaso. “Hopefully this is the start of them truly buying in. Tonight, we made it happen—we have to make sure we keep it going.”

NorthPort, meanwhile, failed to recover from its 96-113 defeat to Rain or Shine on April 16. They struggled with 18 turnovers and never found an offensive rhythm despite strong individual performances from Joshua Munzon (27 points) and William Navarro, who notched his third consecutive double-double with 24 points and 11 rebounds.

Arvin Tolentino, returning from a one-game absence due to a hip injury, had a rough outing with only 15 points on 6-of-17 shooting and a game-high four turnovers.

The Scores:

BLACKWATER 120 – Barefield 20, David 19, Ilagan 17, Escoto 15, Andrade 14, Mallilin 10, Ayonayon 9, Guinto 7, Tungcab 5, Chua 2, Tratter 2, Casio 0.

NORTHPORT 98 – Munzon 27, Navarro 24, Tolentino 15, Bulanadi 12, Jalalon 7, Onwubere 6, Cuntapay 3, Flores 3, Yu 1, Nelle 0, Kwekuteye 0, Taha 0.

Quarters: 20-22, 48-47, 88-74, 120-98