Matthew Wright came up big on both ends as Phoenix Super LPG averted a meltdown and escaped TNT, 93-92, for a successful return to the 2021-22 PBA Governors’ Cup, Sunday at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
The Fil-Canadian star stole the ball away from Jayson Castro with a little over five seconds left, and immediately sprinted downhill for the unmolested lay-up to give his side the lead after coughing up a 12-point advantage early.
His efforts were then preserved by Jason Perkins, who blocked the potential game-winning alley-oop lay-up of Troy Rosario as time expired.
Wright finished with a game-high 27 points, alongside 10 assists, four rebounds, and three steals as the Fuel Masters improved to 4-2 to begin life without lead floor general Chris Banchero on the right note.
“We just stayed on the course, we focused on the things that we needed to focus on,” said head coach Topex Robinson. “And we just played our hearts out and played against, again, a strong team like Talk ‘N Text.”
RJ Jazul made his presence felt as well in the victory with 16 points on three triples, together with five rebounds.
New import Dominique Sutton, who planed into the country days before the season resumption, contributed a double-double performance with 13 points and 10 rebounds, along with three steals, two assists, and a block.
Perkins finished with 12 points, including the tough lay-up with 27.1 seconds left that cut the opposition’s lead to a solitary point. Sean Manganti chimed in 10 markers as Robinson lauded his wards’ collective effort.
“It’s always gonna be everybody helping each other out,” said the young bench tactician. “Whoever has a chance to contribute in any way that they can, especially defensively, that’s really much appreciated on this team.”
Phoenix’s display of great resolve put to waste the sterling performance of Mikey Williams for TNT, who poured 13 of his team-high 22 points in the fourth quarter as he spearheaded his crew’s furious rally.
It was the 2021 Philippine Cup Finals MVP who put his team ahead with a triple, powering a run that saw him give the Tropang Giga an 85-67 lead, 6:23 to go.
“Mikey made big shots after big shots, and we just focused on the next possession that we have, and we really made sure that every opportunity that we have, offensively, we’ll make the most out of it,” Robinson said.
Import Aaron Fuller had 11 points and 23 rebounds in the defeat. Castro and Troy Rosario had 11 markers each as well, as TNT dropped to 2-4.
Phoenix will look to make it three in a row against league leaders Magnolia on Saturday at 6:45 p.m. The Tropa, meanwhile, hopes to snap out of their funk against defending champs Ginebra on Friday at 6:00 p.m.
The Scores:
Phoenix Super LPG 93 – Wright 27, Jazul 16, Sutton 13, Perkins 12, Manganti 10, Pascual 4, Chua 3, Garcia 2, Melecio 2, Rios 2, Robles 2, Demusis 0, Camacho 0.
TNT 92 – M. Williams 22, Banal 18, Castro 11, Rosario 11, Fuller 11, Montalbo 9, K. Williams 6, Alejandro 4, Khobuntin 0, Heruela 0, Marcelo 0.
Quarterscores: 21-15, 44-41, 72-70, 93-92.
—
All PBA games stream live on GigaPlay. Download it now on Android or IOS.
The second game of each playdate is also livestreamed on SMART Sports.
