After three years under the tutelage of Jeffrey Cariaso, the Blackwater Bossing decided to change leadership midway through the PBA Season 50 Commissioner's Cup, naming Pat Aquino as his replacement.
With a decorated career in the UAAP, where he steered National University to six women's basketball championships, and as the architect of Gilas Pilipinas Women's rise to Division A of the FIBA Women's Asia Cup, along with three Southeast Asian Games gold medals, Aquino now faces arguably the toughest challenge of his coaching career: reviving a Blackwater franchise that has long struggled to find consistency in the PBA.
And with a full conference break to prepare, the early returns were just what the doctor ordered.
Blackwater opened its PBA Season 50 Governors' Cup campaign with an impressive 131-108 dismantling of the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters on Saturday, July 11, at the Ynares Center in Montalban, the same squad that handed the Bossing a league-record 56-point defeat in their previous meeting.
Leading the way was import Kentrell Barkley, who wasted little time making his presence felt by stuffing the stat sheet with 29 points, 15 rebounds, and 10 assists for the conference's first triple-double.
Moreover, the guard trio of Sedrick Barefield, RK Ilagan, and Dalph Panopio provided ample local production with a combined 65 points.
For Aquino, the emphatic victory was less of a surprise than it was a validation of the work Blackwater had put in.
"I wouldn't say that because I think we had a great offseason. We talked about how we wanted to bounce back this conference, and I think everyone came in motivated," Aquino said when asked about their dominant opening victory.
"With KB around, he's a great help for us, being a great leader out there. We hope that we just continue working harder and we improve more in the coming games."
Known for the up-tempo identity he built with his previous teams, Aquino has long emphasized pace, ball movement, and relentless pressure.
Against one of the PBA's premier transition teams in Rain or Shine, the Bossing more than held their own.
They forced 16 Elasto Painters turnovers that led to 20 points while also scoring 24 fastbreak points.
In addition, their unselfishness was equally evident as Blackwater finished with 24 assists, repeatedly finding the open man.
"We want to imitate what they're doing also. Trying to be very aggressive from start to finish and I think we did that part," Aquino said.
"As far as I'm concerned, the assist number is great for us. That's about how we play. That's how we started and I hope that we can continue playing together."
Still, Aquino knows the Bossing's breakthrough victory will mean little if they fail to build on it.
The Governors' Cup group stage leaves little room for complacency, with every result carrying added weight in the race for the quarterfinals.
For a Blackwater squad looking to prove it can hang with the conference contenders, the statement victory in the opener is merely the first step.
"The thing is, we need a lot more work to be done. I know this is just the start. It's a long, long way in the conference. We're just happy that we won our first game," Aquino added.
"It's a good start. That's what we want, having to win the first game. We'll just follow up in the next games to be better."