PETRON Blaze roared to a second straight victory also in one-sided style last night, ripping defending champion Talk ’N Text, 77-63, for a piece of the PLDT MyDSL PBA Philippine Cup lead at Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.
The Boosters led by as many as 27 points and played much of the second half in cruise control, dealing the short-handed Tropang Texters a first loss in two games for a tie with Globalport, which hammered Air21, 114-100, in the first game.
“We’re really happy with the effort we gave out tonight,” said coach Gee Abanilla, whose wards ran down the Batang Pier last Wednesday.
Rookie Terrence Romeo nearly stole the thunder from Petron’s win, dropping 34 points—the highest in the young PBA season—against Air21.
The spike-haired former Far Eastern ace in the UAAP hit 14 of his total in the breakaway third period before helping seal the deal in the fourth for the Batang Pier, who rose to 1-1 while dealing the Express a second straight loss.
It was also the first win for Richie Ticzon, management’s surprise choice as interim coach in the off-season.
“It’s a good thing that we were able to make our three-pointers,” Ticzon said. “I really hope that there will be more wins to come for us.”
Romeo was at the forefront of Globalport’s hot shooting night, finishing with a 6-of-9 clip from beyond the arc as the Batang Pier shot 10-of-27 from there.
The scores:
First Game
GLOBALPORT 114—Romeo 34, Washington 19, Mercado 14, Ponferrada 8, Menk 7, Salvador 7, Garcia 7, Belencion 6, Najorda 6, Salvador 4, Hayes 2.
AIR21 100—Yeo 24, Taulava 21, Jaime 13, Canaleta 11, Custodio 8, Manuel 8, Camson 6, Espiritu 3, Sharma 3, Ritualo 3, Menor 0, Arboleda 0.
Quarters: 20-18, 47-46, 83-74, 114-100
Second Game
PETRON 77—Santos 15, Lassiter 13, Lutz 12, Fajardo 10, Kramer 10, Hubalde 8, Ross 6, Deutchman 3, Duncil 0.
TALK ‘N TEXT 63—Castro 15, Baclao 10, Alapag 9, Fonacier 8, Anthony 7, Poligrates 4, Williams 3, Aban 2, Ferriols 2, Carey 2, Peek 1, Reyes 0.
Quarters: 22-12, 55-32, 68-51, 77-63