MANILA – Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters secured the No. 2 seat heading into the 2020 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup playoffs with a come-from-behind 90-88 win over Rain or Shine Elasto Painters at the AUF Sports Arena and Cultural Center in Pampanga last night.
Down by as much as 14 points early in the final quarter, the Fuel Masters leaned on baskets from Jason Perkins, Calvin Abueva and Brian Heruela to come to within 75-80 before the Painters extended it to 82-75 via a floater by Negrense James Yap.
Phoenix pulled even closer at 81-83 on back-to-back triples by RJ Jazul, but RoS widened the lead to 85-81 on two freebies by Beau Belga before the Fuel Masters surged ahead at 86-85 on a triple by Bacolodnon Justin Chua and a two-pointer by Perkins.
The Painters could not buy a basket on the other end as the Fuel Masters widened the lead to 90-85 on a layup by Abueva and two free throws by Matthew Wright with three seconds remaining.
Perkins finished the match with 30 points and eight rebounds, Chua chipped in double-double 21 points and 10 rebounds while Wright contributed 11 markers for the Fuel Masters.
Phoenix finished the elimination tied with Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings at a 8-3 W-L slate, but dropped to No. 2 spot due to win-over-the-other rule. The Fuel Masters now carry a twice-to-beat edge in the quarterfinals against No. 7 Magnolia Hotshots.
Jewel Ponferrada and Javee Mocon ended up with 13 points each while Beau Belga added 12 markers as the Painters finished at No. 8 with 6-5 record and will face the Kings, which garnered a twice-to-beat incentive in the quarterfinals.
In the other playoffs pairings, No. 3 ranked TNT Tropang Giga (7-4) will have a twice-to-beat incentive over No. 6 Alaska Aces (7-4), while No. 4 San Miguel Beermen (7-4) also have a twice-to-beat advantage over No. 5 Meralco Bolts (7-4).
Both the Bolts and the Hotshots, however, got a warm-up prior to their attempt to overcome the twice-to-win disadvantage in the quarterfinals with their resounding triumphs earlier in the day.
The Bolts cruised to an 80-73 victory over NorthPort Batang Pier (1-10) behind the 14 points of Kier John Quinto, while the Hotshots leaned on Ian Sangalang’s 17 points to beat Blackwater Elite (2-9), 95-80.
BOX SCORE:
PHOENIX 90 – Perkins 30, Chua 21, Wright 11, Abueva 7, Jazul 6, Intal 5, Garcia 3, Heruela 3, Napoles 2, Rios 2, Mallari 0, Marcelo 0.
RAIN OR SHINE 88 – Ponferrada 13, Mocon 13, Belga 12, Yap 8, Torres 7, Nambatac 7, Arana 6, Onwubere 6, Doliguez 6, Borboran 4, Rivero 2, Norwood 2, Rosales 2, Wong 0, Tolentino 0.
QUARTERSCORES:
Q1, 21-24; Q2, 46-42; Q3, 59-66; Q4, 90-88./PN
