Petron Blaze powers past Rain or Shine in PBA Governor’s Cup

At least for this game, Petron Blaze played like the powerhouse that it is.
Getting off to a hot start, the Boosters tore erstwhile undefeated Rain or Shine to shreds on Friday night and created a three-way logjam for the early lead in the PBA Governors’ Cup following an easy 99-84 conquest at the Araneta Coliseum.
Racing to an 11-2 lead after the first two minutes and to an 18-point bubble halfway through the first quarter, the Boosters were never really threatened the rest of the way by a Rain or Shine crew that suddenly found it very difficult to make baskets.
“I think we were also lucky in a way because they (Elasto Painters) really couldn’t make their shots,” Petron coach Gee Abanilla said.
Petron led by as large as 23 in the third period and – because of the Elasto Painters’ atrocious shooting – didn’t really find it difficult in repulsing several rally attempts by Rain or Shine before rising to 2-1 overall and catching the Painters on top.
Also improving to the same slate was Globalport, which got the marginal triple from Gary David in the final 9.1 seconds for a 91-88 upset of debuting Alaska.
Elijah Millsap scattered 33 points and had 13 rebounds and four steals, and Alex Cabagnot drilled in 16 points that went with 11 rebounds and four assists to pace the Boosters.
Arizona Reid was the only consistent man for coach Yeng Guiao at Rain or Shine as the hard-working import finished with 30 points and 14 boards. He scored 19 of his total in the third period when he doggedly tried to bring the Painters back.
But the Boosters simply had so much firepower with Arwind Santos and rookie June Mar Fajardo combining for another 25 points.
Abanilla, who was Guiao’s chief assistant at Red Bull, credited to team’s fine form to the two practices they were able to squeeze in even during the height of Typhoon Maring that battered the whole of the metro and left thousands homeless.
A steady, three-day downpour forced the league to cancel its games last Wednesday, but Abanilla found another venue to hold practices to keep his players safe from harm and sharp for last night.
Meanwhile, Globalport, with the win over the rusty Aces, matched its franchise best start and is leading a tournament for the first time in its young PBA life.
And the Batang Pier have David and former two-time MVP Willie Miller – the two oldest players in their roster – to thank for that.
Miller, a left-hander who won his MVPs in stints with Red Bull and Talk ‘N Text, hit two straight right-handed layups under heavy pressure from super Alaska rookie Calvin Abueva that gave the Batang Pier an 88-85 lead heading into the final 1:54.
It looked like it would be a breeze for Globalport from there before Cyrus Baguio tied it all up for the last time at the 1:11 mark with a booming triple.
What was special about David’s triple was that it came after two horrible misses from basically the same distance. But the shooter in David didn’t make him pass up on the chance to be the hero for the Batang Pier.
Markeith Cummings led Globalport with 28 points and nine rebounds and Miller finished with 14 markers. David had gone 1-of-4 from three-point distance before the winning shot and finished with 10.
Wendell Mckines paced the Aces with 28 points and 13 boards, nine of them the offensive variety, as he played as good as advertised though the rest of the Aces looked rusty to say the least.
Alaska had a chance to send the game into extension, only for Jay Washington to bother a last-ditch triple try by JV Casio that hit nothing but the backboard.