PBA: Basden barrage boosts Petron over Alaska

(Updated 9:05pm) Petron Blaze Boosters import Eddie Basden set the pace for his team, as the one-man fast break and the rest of his squad took advantage of the shoddy transition defense of the Alaska Aces, posting a 107-94 win, Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, in the PBA Governor's Cup.

Basden turned the basketball game into a track meet early, scoring the bulk of his side's first 16 points, but the Aces were feisty early on, even taking the lead on an RJ Jazul scoop shot.  Petron kept the pressure up though, forging 14-1 run that spanned the first and second quarters, to regain the lead, 30-18.


The two teams exchanged 7-0 runs to close out the first half with the Aces down 47-39, but Petron was quick to attack off the intermission, with five early markers headlined by back-to-back Arwind Santos scores making it 52-39.

Alaska couldn't make much headway in the period, exchanging attempts for most of the 12 minutes, but LA Tenorio gave his side some hope with a heave to beat the buzzer from three-fourths of the length of the court that made it a 15-point game, 78-63.

The Aces then took the initiative at the start of the fourth, scoring four straight to get within 11, 78-67. In response, Petron flashed their depth as Chris Lutz, Danny Ildefonso and Dorian Pena unleashed 10 unanswered points, 88-69

Cyrus Baguio finally put an end to his side's silence with a basket at the 7:28 mark of the fourth, but Petron had all the answers. In this case, a dunk by Basden with no one even near him made it a 21-point game, 90-69.

Off a Petron timeout at the 4:44 mark, Santos nailed what seemed to be a dagger shot, 98-76. But as the Blaze Boosters slowly began to insert their bench players, Alaska took advantage of their relaxed state by reeling off a 12-1 run that had them within 11, 99-88 after an and-one play by Gabby Espinas, 2:12 left. That forced Petron to reinsert Basden, and he made two scores to definitively seal the deal.


Basden, a former Chicago Bull in the NBA, posted a dominant effort of 29 points, five assists and four steals.

Chris Lutz added 14 markers, five boards and five dimes to lead the Petron locals, while three other Blaze Boosters finished in double figures as well, including Arwind Santos and his double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds.

Alaska drew 18 points each from their big men Gabby Espinas and Sonny Thoss. The duo also produced 13 rebounds, six assists, six steals and a block.

LA Tenorio added 17 points and six assists, but had seven turnovers, while import Jason Forte reached a double-double of 16 points and 15 caroms.

The Blaze Boosters got 17 fast break attempts, which they converted into 25 transition points. They also turned 26 Alaska turnovers into 26 turnover points.

The dominant win was just what Petron needed after a poor outing against the Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters last Wednesday, putting them at 3-1 with five games remaining. Alaska on the other hand looked to be the mirror image, with a 1-3 win-loss slate. - GMA News


The scores:

Petron 107 - Basden 29, Lutz 14, Santos 13, Washington 12, Ildefonso 12, Yeo 7, Miranda 7, Pena 7, Doruelo 2, Lanete 2, Cabagnot 2, Baclao 0, Reyes 0.

Alaska 94 - Espinas 18, Thoss 18, Tenorio 17, Forte 16, Baguio 16, Baracael 5, Jazul 2, Custodio 2, Eman 0, Dela Cruz 0.

Quarter scoring: 23-18, 47-39, 78-63, 107-94