2017–18 Meralco Bolts season

The 2017–18 Meralco Bolts season was the 8th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).

2017–18 Meralco Bolts season
Head coach	Norman Black
Owner(s)	Manila Electric Company (an MVP group subsidiary)
Philippine Cup results
Record	4–7 (.364)
Place	11th
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Commissioner's Cup results
Record	7–4 (.636)
Place	4th
Playoff finish	Quarterfinalist (lost to Barangay Ginebra, 0–2)
Governors' Cup results
Record	5–6 (.455)
Place	7th
Playoff finish	Semifinalist (lost to Alaska, 1–3)
Meralco Bolts seasons

Key dates

2017

• October 29: The 2017 PBA draft took place in Midtown Atrium, Robinson Place Manila.[1]

Draft picks

Main article: 2017 PBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	PBA D-League team	College
3	7	Jebb Bulawan	F	Philippines	Racal Tile Masters Team Batangas	Lyceum

Roster

Meralco Bolts roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. # POB Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY–MM–DD) From F/C 0 Faundo, Bryan 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1984–02–18 Letran G 6 Tolomia, Mike 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1993–01–06 Far Eastern F 7 Hodge, Cliff 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1988–02–03 Reedley F 8 Salva, Nico 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 194 lb (88 kg) 1990–03–08 Ateneo G 9 Amer, Baser 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1992–09–29 San Beda G/F 11 Newsome, Chris 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1990–06–25 Ateneo F 12 Canaleta, KG 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1982–02–12 UE G 13 Lanete, Garvo 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1989–02–13 San Beda G 17 Caram, Anjo 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) 159 lb (72 kg) 1991–01–14 San Beda C 18 Ballesteros, Jason 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1985–10–07 San Sebastian G/F 20 Dillinger, Jared 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1984–01–06 Hawaiʻi F/C 21 Hugnatan, Reynel (C) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1978–11–03 Manila F/C 25 Bono, Ken 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 280 lb (127 kg) 1984–07–19 Adamson F 33 de Ocampo, Ranidel 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1981–12–08 St. Francis of Assisi F 45 Baracael, Mac 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1985–04–14 Far Eastern F 81 Jamito, Jammer 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1990–09–01 St. Clare	Head coach Norman Black Assistant coach(es) Ronnie Magsanoc (1st Assistant) Gene Afable Patrick Fran Christopher Tan Xavier Nunag Luigi Trillo Team manager Paolo Trillo Legend (C) Team captain (I) Import (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (IN) Inactive (S) Suspended (R) Rookie Injured

Philippine Cup

Eliminations

Standings

Pos	Team	W	L	PCT	GB	Qualification
1	San Miguel Beermen	8	3	.727[lower-alpha 1]	—	Twice-to-beat in the quarterfinals
2	Magnolia Hotshots	8	3	.727[lower-alpha 1]	—
3	Alaska Aces	7	4	.636	1	Best-of-three quarterfinals
4	Barangay Ginebra San Miguel	6	5	.545[lower-alpha 2]	2
5	Rain or Shine Elasto Painters	6	5	.545[lower-alpha 2]	2
6	NLEX Road Warriors	6	5	.545[lower-alpha 2]	2
7	GlobalPort Batang Pier	5	6	.455[lower-alpha 3]	3	Twice-to-win in the quarterfinals
8	TNT KaTropa	5	6	.455[lower-alpha 3]	3
9	Phoenix Fuel Masters	5	6	.455[lower-alpha 3]	3
10	Blackwater Elite	5	6	.455[lower-alpha 3]	3
11	Meralco Bolts	4	7	.364	4
12	Kia Picanto	1	10	.091	7

Source: PBA.ph
Rules for classification: 1) winning percentage; 2) if two teams are tied, head to head record; if three or more teams are tied, head-to-head goal average (quotient), if tied for 8th, one-game playoff; 3) overall quotient 4) coin toss[2]
Notes:

1. Head-to-head record: San Miguel 1–0 Magnolia
2. Head-to-head quotient: Barangay Ginebra 1.03, Rain or Shine 1.02, NLEX 0.95
3. Head-to-head quotient: GlobalPort 1.14, Phoenix 1.00, TNT 0.97, Blackwater 0.89; #8 seed playoff: TNT defeated Phoenix

Game log

2018 PBA Philippine Cup game log Total: 4–7
December: 1–1 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 1 December 22 Blackwater W 103–98 KG Canaleta (25) Jason Ballesteros (12) Baser Amer (12) Cuneta Astrodome 1–0 2 December 27 San Miguel L 97–103 Mike Tolomia (21) Chris Newsome (13) Baser Amer (9) Ynares Center 1–1
January : 1–3 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 3 January 10 Alaska L 98–103 Chris Newsome (23) KG Canaleta (10) Amer, Newsome (4) Smart Araneta Coliseum 1–2 4 January 21 TNT L 81–99 Baser Amer (20) Amer, Ballesteros (6) Baser Amer (6) Ynares Center 1–3 5 January 24 Kia W 105–76 KG Canaleta (17) Chris Newsome (7) Baser Amer (9) Smart Araneta Coliseum 2–3 6 January 28 GlobalPort L 88–107 Hugnatan, Newsome (17) Cliff Hodge (8) three players (3) Smart Araneta Coliseum 2–4
February : 2–3 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 7 February 2 Rain or Shine L 84–90 KG Canaleta (24) Chris Newsome (11) Chris Newsome (7) Mall of Asia Arena 2–5 8 February 9 NLEX L 85–87 Nico Salva (20) Chris Newsome (10) Chris Newsome (7) Cuneta Astrodome 2–6 9 February 14 Phoenix W 92–90 Garvo Lanete (24) Jason Ballesteros (12) Chris Newsome (5) Smart Araneta Coliseum 3–6 10 February 18 Barangay Ginebra W 84–82 Garvo Lanete (19) Jason Ballesteros (17) Chris Newsome (6) Philippine Arena 4–6 11 February 24 Magnolia L 65–94 Chris Newsome (13) Jason Ballesteros (9) Chris Newsome (3) Xavier University Gym 4–7

Commissioner's Cup

Eliminations

Standings

Pos	Team	W	L	PCT	GB	Qualification
1	Rain or Shine Elasto Painters	9	2	.818	—	Twice-to-beat in the quarterfinals
2	Alaska Aces	8	3	.727[lower-alpha 1]	1
3	TNT KaTropa	8	3	.727[lower-alpha 1]	1	Best-of-three quarterfinals
4	Meralco Bolts	7	4	.636	2
5	Barangay Ginebra San Miguel	6	5	.545[lower-alpha 2]	3
6	San Miguel Beermen	6	5	.545[lower-alpha 2]	3
7	Magnolia Hotshots	6	5	.545[lower-alpha 2]	3	Twice-to-win in the quarterfinals
8	GlobalPort Batang Pier	5	6	.455	4
9	Columbian Dyip	4	7	.364[lower-alpha 3]	5
10	Phoenix Fuel Masters	4	7	.364[lower-alpha 3]	5
11	NLEX Road Warriors	2	9	.182	7
12	Blackwater Elite	1	10	.091	8

Source: PBA.ph
Rules for classification: 1) winning percentage; 2) if two teams are tied, head to head record; if three or more teams are tied, head-to-head goal average (quotient); 3) overall quotient 4) coin toss[2]
Notes:

1. Head-to-head record: Alaska 1–0 TNT
2. Head-to-head quotient: Barangay Ginebra 1.07, San Miguel 1.02, Magnolia 0.92
3. Head-to-head record: Columbian 1–0 Phoenix

Game log

2018 PBA Commissioner's Cup game log Total: 7–4
April: 1–1 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 1 April 25 Columbian W 116–103 Arinze Onuaku (30) Arinze Onuaku (19) Chris Newsome (7) Smart Araneta Coliseum 1–0 2 April 27 GlobalPort L 85–86 KG Canaleta (28) Arinze Onuaku (14) Baser Amer (8) Smart Araneta Coliseum 1–1
May : 2–1 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 3 May 4 NLEX W 106–90 Chris Newsome (30) Arinze Onuaku (23) Baser Amer (6) Smart Araneta Coliseum 2–1 4 May 9 San Miguel W 93–85 Baser Amer (28) Arinze Onuaku (12) Arinze Onuaku (8) Mall of Asia Arena 3–1 5 May 18 Magnolia L 79–81 Arinze Onuaku (23) Arinze Onuaku (11) Newsome, Onuaku (7) Smart Araneta Coliseum 3–2 All-Star Break
June : 4–2 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 6 June 1 Barangay Ginebra W 93–82 Arinze Onuaku (24) Arinze Onuaku (23) Anjo Caram (7) Mall of Asia Arena 4–2 7 June 8 Phoenix W 103–100 (OT) KG Canaleta (30) Arinze Onuaku (20) Arinze Onuaku (10) Smart Araneta Coliseum 5–2 8 June 15 Blackwater W 102–75 Arinze Onuaku (17) Arinze Onuaku (16) Chris Newsome (6) Mall of Asia Arena 6–2 9 June 17 Alaska W 89–74 Chris Newsome (18) Arinze Onuaku (23) Chris Newsome (8) Smart Araneta Coliseum 7–2 10 June 22 TNT L 85–91 Chris Newsome (17) Arinze Onuaku (11) Hodge, Onuaku (4) Smart Araneta Coliseum 7–3 11 June 24 Rain or Shine L 99–106 (OT) Chris Newsome (21) Arinze Onuaku (11) Chris Newsome (11) Smart Araneta Coliseum 7–4

Playoffs

Bracket

	Quarterfinals						Semifinals (Best-of-5)					Finals (Best-of-7)
		(#1 twice-to-beat)
	1	Rain or Shine	113	103
	8	GlobalPort	114	97
							1	Rain or Shine	1
		(Best-of-3)					5	Barangay Ginebra	3
	4	Meralco	0
	5	Barangay Ginebra	2
												5	Barangay Ginebra	4
		(#2 twice-to-beat)										6	San Miguel	2
	2	Alaska	89
	7	Magnolia	78
							2	Alaska	1
		(Best-of-3)					6	San Miguel	3
	3	TNT	0
	6	San Miguel	2

Game log

2018 PBA Commissioner's Cup playoffs game log Total: 0–2
Quarterfinals: 0–2 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Series 1 July 9 Barangay Ginebra L 81–88 Baser Amer (15) Arinze Onuaku (18) Chris Newsome (7) Smart Araneta Coliseum 0–1 2 July 11 Barangay Ginebra L 90–104 Arinze Onuaku (21) Arinze Onuaku (13) Amer, Newsome (4) Smart Araneta Coliseum 0–2

Governors' Cup

Eliminations

Standings

Pos	Team	W	L	PCT	GB	Qualification
1	Barangay Ginebra San Miguel	9	2	.818	—	Twice-to-beat in quarterfinals
2	Phoenix Fuel Masters	8	3	.727[lower-alpha 1]	1
3	Alaska Aces	8	3	.727[lower-alpha 1]	1
4	Magnolia Hotshots	8	3	.727[lower-alpha 1]	1
5	Blackwater Elite	7	4	.636	2	Twice-to-win in quarterfinals
6	San Miguel Beermen	6	5	.545	3
7	Meralco Bolts	5	6	.455[lower-alpha 2]	4
8	NLEX Road Warriors	5	6	.455[lower-alpha 2]	4
9	TNT KaTropa	4	7	.364	5
10	Rain or Shine Elasto Painters	3	8	.273	6
11	NorthPort Batang Pier	2	9	.182	7
12	Columbian Dyip	1	10	.091	8

Source: PBA.ph
Rules for classification: 1) winning percentage; 2) if two teams are tied, head-to-head record; if three or more teams are tied, head-to-head goal average (quotient); 3) overall quotient 4) coin toss[2]
Notes:

1. Head-to-head quotient: Phoenix 1.011, Alaska 1.006, Magnolia 0.982
2. Head-to-head record: Meralco 1–0 NLEX

Game log

2018 PBA Governors' Cup game log Total: 5–6
August: 1–2 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 1 August 17 Columbian W 109–106 Allen Durham (26) Allen Durham (20) Allen Durham (9) Ynares Center 1–0 2 August 19 TNT L 90–92 Allen Durham (27) Allen Durham (22) Allen Durham (8) Ynares Center 1–1 3 August 24 Alaska L 72–80 Allen Durham (21) Allen Durham (11) Baser Amer (5) Mall of Asia Arena 1–2
September: 0–1 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 4 September 19 Phoenix L 86–96 Chris Newsome (18) Allen Durham (13) Allen Durham (9) Smart Araneta Coliseum 1–3
October: 3–3 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 5 October 5 Blackwater L 91–94 Allen Durham (32) Allen Durham (21) Allen Durham (6) Smart Araneta Coliseum 1–4 6 October 7 Barangay Ginebra L 105–111 Allen Durham (36) Allen Durham (16) Allen Durham (9) Sta. Rosa Multi-Purpose Complex 1–5 7 October 12 NorthPort L 94–99 Allen Durham (37) Allen Durham (19) Allen Durham (7) Mall of Asia Arena 1–6 8 October 14 NLEX W 108–105 Allen Durham (36) Allen Durham (18) Chris Newsome (9) Smart Araneta Coliseum 2–6 9 October 19 Magnolia W 94–88 Allen Durham (20) Allen Durham (18) Durham, Newsome (8) Ynares Center 3–6 10 October 21 Rain or Shine W 91–82 Allen Durham (19) Allen Durham (20) three players (6) Smart Araneta Coliseum 4–6
November: 1–0 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record 11 November 3 San Miguel W 111–81 Allen Durham (35) Allen Durham (26) Chris Newsome (12) Smart Araneta Coliseum 5–6

Playoffs

Bracket

	Quarterfinals						Semifinals (Best-of-5)					Finals (Best-of-7)
		(#1 twice-to-beat)
	1	Barangay Ginebra	111
	8	NLEX	75
							1	Barangay Ginebra	1
		(#4 twice-to-beat)					4	Magnolia	3
	4	Magnolia	103
	5	Blackwater	99
												4	Magnolia	4
		(#2 twice-to-beat)										3	Alaska	2
	2	Phoenix	74	103
	7	Meralco	90	108*
							7	Meralco	1
		(#3 twice-to-beat)					3	Alaska	3
	3	Alaska	96
	6	San Miguel	85

*Game went into overtime.

Game log

2018 PBA Governors' Cup playoffs game log Total: 3–3
Quarterfinals: 2–0 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Series 1 November 7 Phoenix W 90–74 Allen Durham (26) Allen Durham (16) Baser Amer (6) Cuneta Astrodome 1–0 2 November 9 Phoenix W 108–103 (OT) Allen Durham (32) Allen Durham (21) Allen Durham (9) Smart Araneta Coliseum 2–0
Semifinals: 1–3 Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Series 1 November 11 Alaska W 97–92 Allen Durham (32) Allen Durham (14) Allen Durham (6) Ynares Center 1–0 2 November 13 Alaska L 95–100 Allen Durham (24) Allen Durham (9) Allen Durham (12) Mall of Asia Arena 1–1 3 November 15 Alaska L 102–104 Allen Durham (37) Allen Durham (13) Allen Durham (8) Cuneta Astrodome 1–2 4 November 17 Alaska L 92–99 Allen Durham (31) Allen Durham (14) Chris Newsome (7) Cuneta Astrodome 1–3

FIBA Asia Champions Cup

The Bolts were chosen as the Philippine representative to the 2018 FIBA Asia Champions Cup.

Preliminary round

Group B

Pos	Team	Pld	W	L	PF	PA	PD	Pts	Qualification
1	Alvark Tokyo	3	3	0	279	249	+30	6	Final round
2	Meralco Bolts	3	1	2	261	247	+14	4[lower-alpha 1]
3	Mono Vampire (H)	3	1	2	300	306	−6	4[lower-alpha 1]	Classification round
4	Al Riyadi	3	1	2	245	283	−38	4[lower-alpha 1]

Source: FIBA
Rules for classification: 1) Tournament points; 2) Head-to-head results; 3) Head-to-head points difference; 4) Head-to-head points scored; 5) Overall points difference; 6) Overall points scored; 7) Random draw
(H) Host.
Notes:

1. Meralco 1–1, +25 PD; Mono 1–1, +2 PD; Al Riyadi 1–1, –27 PD

Final round

	Semifinals				Gold medal game
	1 October–18:00
	Petrochimi	79
					2 October–20:30
	Meralco Bolts	74
					Petrochimi	68
	1 October–20:30
					Alvark Tokyo	64
	Alvark Tokyo	78
	Seoul SK Knights	54
					Bronze medal game
					2 October–18:00
					Meralco Bolts	87
					Seoul SK Knights	91

Transactions

Trades

Pre season

Free Agency

Addition

Country	Player	Number	Position	Contract	Date signed	Former Team
	Niño Canaleta[3]	12	F	N/A	N/A	Blackwater Elite
	Nico Salva[3]	8	F	N/A	N/A	Kia Picanto
	Marnel Baracael[3]	45	F	N/A	N/A	GlobalPort Batang Pier
	Jason Ballesteros[3][4]	18	C	N/A	N/A	Kia Picanto

Recruited imports

Conference	Name	Country	Number	Debuted	Last game	Record
Commissioner's Cup	Arinze Onuaku		5	April 25 (vs. Columbian)	July 11 (vs. Barangay Ginebra)	7–6
Governors' Cup	Allen Durham		5	August 17 (vs. Columbian)	November 17 (vs. Alaska)	8–9
FIBA Asia Champions Cup				September 27 (vs. Mono Vampire)	October 2 (vs. SK Knights)	1–4
	Diamond Stone		33

Awards

Recipient	Award	Date awarded	Ref.
Baser Amer	Governors' Cup Player of the Week	November 13, 2018	[5]

References

1. San Miguel nets Standhardinger, PBA.ph, October 29, 2017
2. "ALL ABOUT THE PBA QUOTIENT".
3. "Beset by injuries, Meralco signs free agents". news.abs-cbn.com. December 8, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
4. Ramos, Gerry (December 8, 2017). "Meralco signs Ballesteros, eyes Canaleta, Baracael to beef up injury-hit frontline". Spin.ph. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
5. "Baser Amer comes of age".