MANILA, Philippines — Meralco secured the second seed in Group A after blasting a short-handed Terrafirma into smithereens, 124-82 in their PBA Season 49 Governors' Cup game on Saturday night at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
Allen Durham and rookie CJ Cansino combined for 15 of Meralco's 34 first quarter points to help the Bolts jump off to a 19-point lead.
The Bolts kept pressing on, extending their lead to 66-37 by halftime, and hardly slowed down en route to closing the double-round eliminations with a 7-3 record in the group stage.
The Dyip, who already lost Juami Tiongson and Christian Standhardinger to injuries, didn't have veteran Stanley Pringle at the team's final game for the conference.
Terrafirma ended its conference campaign at 1-9.
Meralco coach Luigi Trillo emptied his bench early, with Alvin Pasaol taking advantage of his playing time as he led his team with 21 points.
Cansino added 15, Durham had 14 in just 24 minutes of work before resting for the rest of the game.
Import Antonio Hester led the Dyip with 18 points and 11 rebounds, while Mark Sangalang added 17.