Abueva sizzles in return as Aces beat Batang Pier

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Alaska welcomed back four of its key players and took down GlobalPort, 95-84, for its first win in the 2017 PBA Philippine Cup Wednesday at Mall of Asia Arena.

Calvin Abueva chalked up a double-double with 22 points and 11 rebounds in his first game back from an injury on his quadriceps.

“It’s great to have all those guys back. And all of the guys who contributed in their absence still contributed. They played with the same enthusiasm,” said Alaska head coach Alex Compton.

“I thought defensively in the first half we were solid, We had some breakdowns where we gave them some shots but Terrence and Stanley are the most dangerous 1-2 in the league,” he added. “I’m just really disappointed with our ball movement. We just took quick and bad shots.”

Apart from Abueva, the Aces also got Vic Manuel, Ping Exciminiano and Rome dela Rosa back.

Abueva, who unleashed 15 points in the fourth quarter, couldn’t have returned at a better time for Alaska, which is in dire need of a victory against the top team in the league in GlobalPort after dropping its first two games.

The Aces rallied from a nine-point fourth quarter deficit behind Abueva and JVee Casio as both outscored the Batang Pier in the final 12 minutes, 25-19.

A short jumper by Casio, who added 15 points, put Alaska ahead, 79-78, and his 3-pointer sealed the game, 91-82, with 44.2 seconds left.

Terrence Romeo came off the bench and led all scorers with 26 points that went with four assists and four steals while his backcourt mate Stanley Pringle had 23 points, five rebounds and four assists to lead GlobalPort, which absorbed its first loss after a 2-0 start.