With their opponents coming off a morale-boosting win, the Phoenix Fuel Masters made sure to send the Blackwater Elite back down with a 114-95 wire-to-wire win, Friday evening at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City.
The game was never in doubt for Phoenix right from the get-go as they opened the match with an overwhelming 31-9 blitz. The Fuel Masters would go on to lead by as much as 37, 85-48, with less than five minutes left in the third.
Phoenix improved to 4-0 to solidify their grasp of the top spot of the 2019 PBA Philippine Cup standings while sending Blackwater — who is coming off a huge 111-99 win over the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters last Wednesday — to 1-3.
“‘Di namin in-expect yung ganitong game kasi worried nga kami, dahil yung depensa nila sa Rain or Shine flawless. So we made adjustments offensively. Pero sa defense, we did the same thing,” said Phoenix head coach Louie Alas.
Six Fuel Masters finished in double figures, with Calvin Abueva on the forefront with 22 points alongside 14 rebounds. Matthew Wright produced 19 points with seven rebounds and seven assists against seven turnovers.
Sophomore Jason Perkins supplied 15 markers, six boards, and four dimes. Alex Mallari and Justin Chua produced 12 points apiece, RJ Jazul made 11 points built on three triples, and Jaypee Mendoza chimed in 10 markers.
Phoenix though got bitten by the injury bug as JC Intal left with an injured hand. Intal only played for four minutes and 34 seconds, and was already seen at the back of the team’s bench on street clothes in the second half.
Intal’s left hand was heavily wrapped.
Rookie Abu Tratter led Blackwater with 24 points and eight rebounds. Mac Belo made 13 points and nine rebounds, while Paul Desiderio and Allein Maliksi chimed in 12 markers apiece on a combined 7-of-17 shooting from the field.
Phoenix will look to go 5-0 versus the NLEX Road Warriors next Friday, February 8, while Blackwater will aim to bounce back against the San Miguel Beermen on February 6, Wednesday. Both games are at Mall of Asia Arena.
The Scores:
Phoenix 114 – Abueva 22, Wright 19, Perkins 15, Chua 12, Mallari 12, Jazul 11, Mendoza 10, Intal 3, Kramer 3, Dennison 3, Revilla 2, Napoles 2, Marcelo 0, Guevarra 0, Gamboa 0.
Blackwater 95 – Tratter 24, Belo 13, Maliksi 12, Desiderio 12, Javier 8, Digregorio 5, Cortez 5, Palma 4, Dario 4, Banal 3, Sumang 2, Eriobu 2, Sena 1, Jose 0, Alolino 0.
Quarterscores: 37-18, 66-42, 90-62, 114-95.
