NLEX star Robert Bolick will have a lot of stories to tell his son in the future.
Surely, on top of that would be his memorable feats inside the hardcourt.
Bolick just made one great conversation piece last Saturday when he dropped a career-high 46 points on a hot shooting night to lead the Road Warriors to a 115-93 blowout win over winless Converge in the Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The expectant father dedicated his great run to his son, who he said was an answered prayer as he really wanted his first child with his wife Cassandra to be a boy.
“I have a baby on the way, that’s an inspiration for me,” said Bolick, who broke his previous personal-scoring best he set two years ago by two points.
The 28-year-old guard also expressed gratitude to his better half, with whom he would always engage in a unique handshake every after games.
“I’m glad she’s here and safe with our baby. It’s just a few months before we welcome our baby,” Bolick said.
He reached his career milestone after draining a triple as time expired in NLEX’s second straight victory for a 3-1 win-loss record.
Bolick shot 17-of-26 from the field including 12-of-14 from the perimeter to shatter his previous high of 44 while still playing for NorthPort in a 101-95 overtime win over Meralco in the Commissioner’s Cup back on 30 September 2022.
However, Bolick downplayed his scoring achievement.
“Happy, of course, but we’re focused on winning. Happy we won. Reaching a career high for me is just an individual achievement. This is still a team sport,” Bolick, who once dropped 50 during his days with San Beda University in the National Collegiate Athletic Association, said.
Bolick already had 36 points late in the third when he was recalled to the bench by head coach Frankie Lim.
He would stay on his seat for much of the fourth quarter NLEX opened a big gap courtesy of consecutive treys by Rob Herndon.
Bolick checked in with 5:57 left. He completed a three-point play for his first basket of the fourth period followed by back-to-back layups to move within one point of his previous career-high.
Lim said it was not his intention to see the prolific scorer to reset his personal high against the winless FiberXers.
“No, I just wanted him to score. We really need to create a separation. I told them at halftime we have to keep our distance from Converge,” he said.
Bolick and the Road Warriors have one last assignment against unbeaten Blackwater before the long All-Star and Holy Week break.
“Hopefully, we can sustain our momentum. We still have one game on Wednesday before the long (Lenten) break,” Bolick said.
