Meralco coach Norman Black believed that it could have been an entirely different ball game if NorthPort had Greg Slaughter on the court in their PBA Philippine Cup opener.
The Bolts zapped the Batang Pier, 85-63, behind Mac Belo's explosive debut for Black's side on Friday night, July 16, at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig.
Although he was seen joining the pre-game warm-up, the 7-foot Slaughter did not play a single second for NorthPort.
The former Barangay Ginebra standout was reportedly coming off his vaccination in the United States, which could have caused his DNP status.
"Well, one of their best players did not play tonight and that's Greg Slaughter. If Greg is out there, it's a completely different story," said Black.
With Slaughter out, Belo, who fired a career-high 27 points to go with nine rebounds, and the rest of the Bolts dominated the Batang Pier under the basket, dropping 48 points inside the paint--more than half of their total scoring output.
Meralco also held NorthPort to a franchise-low 63 points which overtook its previous record low of 68 markers in a two-point loss to Rain or Shine last year in the Clark bubble.
That would not have been the case had Slaughter been available to suit up for the Pido Jarencio-coached squad, according to Black who was able to handle the big man in the latter seasons of Ateneo's five-peat in the UAAP.
Black even compared going up against Slaughter with having San Miguel's 6-foot-10 center and six-time MVP June Mar Fajardo on the opposing side.
"It's like playing against June Mar Fajardo. You really have to pay attention to him (Slaughter). But they didn't have Greg tonight. Some expect when he starts playing with them they're gonna be a much better team."
NorthPort will be hoping to field Slaughter when it tries to bounce back against Phoenix on Wednesday.