PBA: Back-to-action Cabagnot nails game winner to lift Petron past Air21

(Updated 8:04pm) Alex Cabagnot was playing in just his first game of the 2013-14 PBA season, but he was clutch right away, nailing the game-winner via a teardrop shot with 3.5 seconds to go, and giving the Petron Blaze Boosters a 90-88 win over the Air21 Express, Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Chris Lutz scored 25 points to lead six Boosters in double-digit scoring. Arwind Santos had 14 points and nine rebounds, while June Mar Fajardo had 13 points and 16 rebounds. Marcio Lassiter added 12 points, and point guards Chris Ross and Alex Cabagnot, both returning from the inactive list, each scattered 10 points and combined for 13 assists.

"I think it was really a tough win for us. Air21 came out to play, [so] tons of credit to Air21 for playing until the final buzzer," said Petron head coach Gee Abanilla. "We had to rely on the system to fight our way back."

In a game that went down the wire, Mark Cardona converted an and-one over June Mar Fajardo, which Lassiter neutralized with a trey with a minute remaining. Lassiter then grabbed an Express miss before going coast-to-coast for an open layup, 86-82. KG Canaleta however stepped up to the plate, sandwiching Fajardo charities with consecutive triples to knot the game, 88-88, with 20 seconds on the clock.

Petron called a high pick and roll for Fajardo and Alex Cabagnot, creating enough space for the latter to loft a floater with five seconds left that connected. Out of timeouts, Air21 was stymied at half court and couldn't get a decent look before time expired.

The Express spiral lower in the standings, 1-6, while Petron are undefeated in six games. Despite this, Abanilla downplayed his team's success tonight. "We need a lot of patience and understanding with new guys coming in, it's gonna be a challenge for us to get that team chemistry back," he said.

Midway through the third quarter, Santos tallied his 1,000th career offensive rebound.

Both teams started with loose and sloppy play, but Petron shaped up midway, feeding off the Express' misses for transition buckets. The Boosters were comfortable enough to ease point guards Chris Ross and Alex Cabagnot back from injury, and the latter drained a floater to establish a 12-6 lead. Carlo Sharma was active on the block for Air21, but his team's defense was simply not into the game, as they left June Mar Fajardo and Arwind Santos unguarded for easy baskets off full-court passes. Petron led, 19-10, after the first period.

The Boosters started the second quarter with four wingmen and proceeded to stretch the lead to double-digits, 24-12, off a Fajardo layup. The Express matched them defensively and surprisingly, proceeded to outscore them. Cardona exploited the Boosters' lax interior defense for nine points in a 21-8 rally, while Asi Taulava bested Fajardo on three straight possessions to snatch a 33-32 lead with three minutes to play.

Ross and Cardona traded baskets down the stretch, until rookie power forward EJ Camson finished a put-back with six seconds left. But that was more than enough time for Cabagnot to bang home a triple at the halftime buzzer, 39-39.

Cardona scored all his 13 points thus far in the second quarter, and made all his five field goal attempts.


After the break, a Lutz triple spiked a 49-42 lead for the Boosters. Air21 though continued to create opportunities for Asi Taulava and Vic Manuel, while Fajardo sat on the bench with four fouls. The pair combined for 11 points in a 17-6 rally, capped by Camson's mid-range jumper with two minutes to play.

Petron did not score a field goal in the last five minutes of the frame. To make matters worse, Paolo Hubalde received a flagrant one foul after hip-checking Chito Jaime on the break. Jaime split his charities, helping Air21 stake a 60-59 lead after three quarters.

During an uptempo shootout to start the fourth period, neither team led by more than three points. With under four minutes to play, Lutz broke loose for a two-handed jam, only for Cardona to knot it at the other end with a contested triple, 77-77. However the Express fell behind, unable to finish the job beneath the rim, while Petron forged ahead after Marcio Lassiter split charities, 81-79, setting the stage for the gut-wrenching finish.

Petron shot the ball at a 42.1 percent clip (23-of-76) against Air21's 37.4 (34-of-91) mark. The Boosters also led in free throw attempts, 21-of-30 versus 14-of-19.

The Boosters led in fast break points (27-7) and second-chance points (11-4).

Mac Cardona top-scored for Air21 with 24 points. Asi Taulava had a double-double with 16 points and 18 rebounds. KG Canaleta poured 11 points and six rebounds. EJ Camson and Vic Manuel tallied 10 points each, while Camson added 10 boards.

Manuel was benched late in the fourth quarter after aggravating his injured left shoulder in a collision. - AMD, GMA News


The scores:

Petron 90 - Lutz 25, Santos 14, Fajardo 13, Lassiter 12, Ross 10, Cabagnot 10, Hubalde 4, Lanete 2, Duncil 0, Kramer 0

Air21 88 - Cardona 24, Taulava 16, Canaleta 11, Camson 10, Manuel 10, Arboleda 6, Sharma 4, Custodio 4, Jaime 3, Matias 0, Burtscher 0, Espiritu 0, Yeo 0

Quarter scoring: 19-10, 39-39, 59-60, 90-88