NLEX wins Kadayawan Invitational in rout of Blackwater, 101-84

NLEX delivered when it mattered most, pulling off a convincing 101-84 payback win over Blackwater to clinch the 2025 Kadayawan Invitational Basketball Tournament crown on Sunday at the USEP Gym in Davao.

The Road Warriors flipped the script after their 90-95 loss to the Bossing in the elimination round, locking down defensively this time to turn the championship match of the four-day tilt into a lopsided showdown.

With head coach Jong Uichico unavailable, assistant Adonis Tierra stepped up and steered NLEX to victory, anchoring the squad on defense that held Blackwater to just 38% shooting from the floor.

According to Madayaw Sports Davao, Blackwater’s top guns struggled to find their rhythm—Sedrick Barefield was limited to 15 points on 4-of-9 shooting, while RK Ilagan chipped in 10. With their firepower contained, NLEX seized control and never looked back.

The Road Warriors had multiple heroes on offense: Xyrus Torres drained three triples on the way to 19 points, Anthony Semerad tallied a double-double of 16 points and 12 boards, and JB Bahio added his own 12-point, 11-rebound performance.

 Dom Fajardo energized the team with a third-quarter burst, finishing with 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting, while Jonnel Policarpio and Robert Bolick pitched in eight apiece—Bolick also handing out nine assists.

NLEX earlier notched elimination-round wins over Converge (95-88) and Phoenix (100-96) to book their spot in the finals.

In the battle for third, Phoenix demolished Converge, 101-80, handing rookie head coach Willy Wilson his first win with the Fuel Masters. Raffy Verano paced Phoenix with 19 points and nine rebounds, Tyler Tio added 17 points and seven assists, while Kai Ballungay (15) and Sean Manganti (14) also made their mark.

Converge, on the other hand, leaned on Bryan Santos and King Caralipio with 12 points apiece, plus Alec Stockton’s 11, while sparing minutes for twin towers Justine Baltazar and Justin Arana.

OKBET is Asia’s most trusted and popular online sports gaming platform. Visit us on OKBET to stay up to date with all sports news from around the world.