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Phoenix’s JC Intal squeezes past two GlobalPort defenders in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Cuneta Astrodome Wednesday night.[/caption]By Jay R. Gotera
MANILA - Like the legendary bird from which it got its name, the Phoenix Fuel Masters came back from the dead to hack out a stunning 101-99 victory over the GlobalPort Batang Pier Wednesday night in the final game for this year of the PBA Philippine Cup.
Down by 26 points at the start of the fourth quarter, the Fuel Masters outscored the Batang Pier, 40-15, to come away with the epic victory, their second straight and fourth overall against three losses. Phoenix thus climbed up the standings, tying Blackwater at fourth to fifth spot.
Underrated forward Mark Borboran played the hero’s role for Phoenix, tipping in the game-winner off a missed three-pointer by Simon Enciso with 2.1 seconds left. Borboran finished with 23 points, 12 of them in the final period, on 9-of-13 shooting from the field. He also grabbed eight rebounds for the Fuel Masters, who trailed, 87-61, with 11:49 remaining.
Rookie Matthew Wright also starred for the Fuel Masters, finishing with 19 markers, nine rebounds and four assists.
Enciso added 14 points while JC Intal chipped in with nine, including a crucial go-ahead basket in the endgame. Veteran guard Cyrus Baguio also caught fire in the final two minutes and 24 seconds, drilling all of his seven points in that period.
Terrence Romeo dished out 32 points for GlobalPort on a fiery 6-of-13 shooting from three-point range on top of nine assists. However, his guns fell silent when the Batang Pier needed him most in the final minutes of the game.
GlobalPort suffered a second straight setback and slid to a 3-3 card, tying three other teams—Ginebra, Star and Alaska—at sixth to ninth place.
With Phoenix still down by 8 points, 88-96, with less than three minutes left, Baguio nailed a three-pointer, followed by two free throws to cut GlobalPort’s lead to 96-93. The former Alaska gunner then fired another triple, missed, but got the loose ball for a putback that brought his team to within a point, 96-95, with 1:42 remaining.
Intal then grabbed the lead for Phoenix with a strong drive to the basket, 97-96, with 55 seconds left. After another defensive stop, Wright drilled two free throws, 99-96, with 33 ticks left.
Romeo finally came to life for GlobalPort, drawing another foul on a three-point attempt. He hit all three of his free throws to tie the game, 99-apiece.
Enciso flung a three-pointer from the corner but missed, but Borboran was there for a huge tip-in, 101-99, that sealed the win for Phoenix.
San Miguel Beer 101, Meralco 86
The San Miguel Beermen drubbed the Meralco Bolts, 101-86, to keep a firm grip of the top spot in the standings with their fourth straight win and fifth overall against a lone setback.
Marcio Lassiter paced SMB with 21 points while Alex Cabagnot added 20 markers. Chris Ross added 18 points, five assists and six steals while June Mar Fajardo had a double-double 11 points and 14 rebounds.
Chris Newsome led Meralco with 16 points, not enough to stop the Bolts from suffering a third straight loss and fourth overall against two wins, pushing their team down to solo 10th in the standings.
Games Friday (Jan. 6): GlobalPort Batang Pier (3-3) vs. Meralco Bolts (2-3); and San Miguel Beermen (5-1) vs. Blackwater Elite (4-3).
