Just like a phoenix the Accelerators rose above foul trouble and a 21 point deficit!
The Phoenix Petroleum-FEU Accelerators turned to the troika of King Tamaraws Mike Tolomia, RR Pogoy, and Mac Belo in a huge fourth quarter rally to pull the plug on the AMA Online Education Titans 114-102 to notch their second win in the 2016 PBA D-League Aspirants Cup Tuesday afternoon at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan City.
After an early 6-0 lead, the Titans torched the Accelerator defense in a 21-7 blast to take a 21-13 lead late in the first quarter. Filipino-American Jerramy King slashed through the lanes in scoring ten first quarter points and assisting on four made field goals. Back-to-back finds by King to Jamito Jammer, the latter a three-point play, gave AMA a 26-17 lead to end the period.
AMA continued to surge in the second period. The troika of King, Jammer, and Julian Sargent combined for 19 second quarter points to help sustain the lead for the Titans. Moreover, foul trouble plagued the Accelerators with Ed Daquioag being penalized with three fouls early in the second stanza. Mac Belo and Raymar Jose carried the load for Phoenix but were dealt with a 53-42 deficit to enter halftime.
The Titan lead continued to surge early in the third quarter as Phoenix could not find an answer for the inside-outside combination of King and Jamito. The lead grew to a game-high 22 points, 71-49, after a Sargent find to a King triple with 5:40 left in the third. Tolomia though exploded late in the quarter. The former King Tamaraw exploded for 16 points in the quarter capped by a buzzer-beating pull-up three from way outside to cut the lead to just 11, 87-76, to enter the final frame. In addition, AMA was limited to just free throws and were forced to turnovers by the pressing Phoenix defense the rest of the way.
The Phoenix Accelerators went on a 19-4 rally to cut the lead to just a single-point, 91-90, with 7:21 remaining. Pogoy scored seven points in the rally while Belo provided the last five points of the rally. After a split on the stripe by Sargent, Tolomia converted on a four-point play to finally give Phoenix the lead, 94-92. Back-to-back baskets by Mark Romero gave AMA their last taste of the lead with 4:46 left. Belo continued to pound that paint the rest of the way while Al Francis Tamsi and Daquioag put on the finishing touches to complete the hijack, 114-102.
“Sabi ko sa kanila, nung first half hindi naman kayo naglalaro. Kapag hindi kayo naglalaro ng matino, nagyayabang kayo,” a frustrated Phoenix head coach Eric Gonzales said after the game. “Sana wala kayong pipiliin na kung sino ang kalaban. Wala namang magic dito, kelangan niyo magtrabaho.”
With two dominating wins to open their campaign, Gonzales does not want to say that they are one of the favorites in the tournament. “May mas malakas pa sa amin. Yung Cafe France at yung Jam. Makakalaban nga namin yung Jam next game,” he closed.
Mike Tolomia notched a triple-double with 28 points, ten rebounds, and ten assists. He was 10/21 from the field and 6/8 from the foul line as well. RR Pogoy added 21 points while Belo scored 18, 11 in the final frame.
For the Titans, Jerramy King almost notched a triple-double with 29 points, seven rebounds, and nine assists. He was 16/18 from the charity stripe but was just 33% from the field. Jamito Jammer was excellent from the field in shooting 8/13 for 25 points.
As a team, Phoenix shot 49% from the field while AMA shot at a 45% clip. However, the Accelerators were able to knockdown ten triples in the game and were able to outrebound their opponent 50-40.
The Phoenix Petroleum-FEU Accelerators (2-0) will next face the UP-QRS/Jam Liner Maroons (2-0) on Tuesday, February 9 at 2:00pm while the AMA Online Education Titans (0-2) have the BDO-National University Bulldogs (0-2) on the same day at 4:00pm.
The Scores:
Phoenix Petroleum (114) – Tolomia 28, Pogoy 21, Belo 18, Jose 16, Tamsi 10, Daquioag 7, Escoto Ri. 4, Escoto Ru. 4, Mendoza 4, Elmejrab 2, Dennison 0, Inigo 0, Lee Yu 0.
AMA Online (102) – King 29, Jamito 25, Sargent 16, Romero 14, Dagangon 8, Balucanag 4, Dela Cruz 4, Calma 2, Arambulo 0, Carpio 0, Castro 0, Hernandez 0, Macaranas 0, McCarthy 0.
Quarterscores: 17-26, 42-53, 76-87, 114-102.
