The Meralco Bolts may have had a disappointing end to their 2024 PBA Governors’ Cup campaign, but they’re currently off to a fine start in the 2024-2025 East Asia Super League (EASL) Season. 

The Bolts earned a 97-85 victory over the Macau Black Bears thanks to a balanced scoring attack that saw seven players from Meralco score at least seven points. An offensive performance like that was much needed, as the Bolts needed to answer the Black Bears’ runs in order to avoid the same fate the San Miguel Beermen had suffered earlier against the Suwon KT Sonicboom. 

Chris Newsome really enjoys playing in the EASL, as he led Meralco with 18 points, three rebounds, six assists, and three steals. Newsome’s four 3-pointers also helped the Bolts extend their lead on a number of occasions, while his playmaking helped get the likes of Allen Durham (17 points), DJ Kennedy (17 points), Chris Banchero (14 points), and Raymond Almazan (seven points) involved. Even the fans seemed to be getting in on the hot shooting. 

Sure, Meralco was now the tournament veteran taking on the newcomer in Macau, but it was great to see the Bolts adjust to playing under a two-import system (well three if you count Ange Kouame but he’s a naturalized Filipino citizen). Meralco also did not veer away from what they ran in the PBA and mixing this with what’s done in the rest of the world should give the PBA some scope to consider changes to their format. 

Concerns with the two-import system may stem from Filipinos losing slots to foreigners, but the Bolts showed that the right imports can actually provide a boost and lift the games of the Filipinos in the roster. This holds true especially when PBA teams go for fit rather than star power, although sometimes teams do need star power. However, when fit is the top priority, the results usually speak for themselves. Just ask Justin Brownlee and the Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings. 

For Meralco, having Allen Durham comes largely out of familiarity, but the addition of Kennedy gives them a dynamic scorer with experience. Of course, the Bolts had their fair share of scorers in Newsome, Banchero, and the injured Allein Maliksi, but it helps to have depth offensively once the latter stages of the competition begin. 

The Meralco Bolts may have played in the comforts of the Mall of Asia Area to open up the 2024-2025 EASL Season, but they will be the road team for two of their next three games. That could provide some measure of difficulty for the Bolts, but given how they’ve adapted thus far in the EASL, the next few games could be their way of showing that Philippine teams are more than just crowd drawers for the EASL.