Alaska outlasts Phoenix, Abueva to stay unbeaten

Calvin Abueva came off the bench for 18 points, but it was not enough as his new team, Phoenix, failed to keep up with his old squad Alaska, 108-97, on Wednesday at the Araneta Coliseum in the 2018 PBA Governors’ Cup.

The Fuelmasters were ahead by as many as 11 points, but the Aces leaned on a 34-24 third period to take the lead in the third quarter en route to victory.

Phoenix shot a decent 42 percent from the field, but the Aces were on point on offense, hitting 47 percent of their shots including a 40 percent clip from beyond the arc.

Alaska also rotated the ball better, tallying 31 assists to Phoenix’s 23, as four of Alex Compton’s players scored 15 points or more.

Mike Harris led the Aces with 23, while Chris Banchero and Simon Enciso added 19 and 18 points, respectively. Noy Baclao, meanwhile, scored 15.

Down by as many as 12 midway through the fourth, Phoenix was able to cut the deficit to just seven with less than two minutes remaining.

The Fuelmasters, however, failed to score in the final 1:36, their last basket coming from an Abueva layup.

Eugene Phelps paced Phoenix with 27 big points with 24 rebounds but with eight turnovers. Jason Perkins was effective for 20 points, as Matthew Wright settled for 13 off a 5 of 14 clip.

With the win, Alaska solidified its hold of solo first with a 3-0 win-loss card, while Phoenix dropped to 2-1 for their first loss of the young conference. — BAP, GMA News