PBA: Petron Blaze nips Rain or Shine, inches closer to Finals berth

Arwind Santos of Petron (dark) vs Arizona Reid of Rain or Shine (ligh

MANILA, Philippines — Petron Blaze edged a resilient Rain or Shine side in a 90-88 thriller to go up 2-0 in their PBA Governors’ Cup best-of-five semifinals series Wednesday night at the Cuneta Astrodome.

The Boosters hiked their winning streak to 11 games but more importantly moved to within a game of sweeping the Elasto Painters and clinching a Finals appearance.

June Mar Fajardo led Petron with 26 points while import Elijah Millsap added 19.

The Painters quickly trimmed a nine-point deficit as they pulled to within one on a tip in by Beau Belga, 88-89, with 7.7 ticks left.

Millsap went one-of-two at the line as Petron survived despite a 39-point outburst by Arizona Reid.