Hot Phoenix burns NLEX, grabs share of fourth

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Phoenix got going in the second half to beat NLEX, 102-91, in the 2017 PBA Philippine Cup Wednesday night at Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City.

Simon Enciso fired 21 points built on five 3-pointers and had five rebounds and four assists for the Fuel Masters, who joined Blackwater and TNT in fourth place with a 5-4 card.

“There’s nothing to celebrate yet because the teams we’re tied with at 5-4 had beaten us and then you have Star who beat us by 44,” said Phoenix head coach Ariel Vanguardia. “Right now, we’re virtually tied with them but we’re lower than them in the quotient.”

Up by only 53-48 after two quarters, Phoenix looked like a different team coming out of halftime with Enciso and Cyrus Baguio leading the way.

“I challenged them at halftime. We lost the first quarter so we weren’t covering their shooters well. I told them to cover their shooters and they (NLEX) are number one in fastbreak points so I told the guys to defend their transition,” Vanguardia said.

“Simon bounced back from being 1-11 to have a very decent shooting today. Willie Wilson also gave us a lot of energy. It’s his first game back. Now he’s a 100 percent.”

Enciso banked in a 3-pointer to put Phoenix ahead by 20, 90-70, and his drive followed by a Mark Borboran triple inside the last four minutes for a 99-80 buffer dashed NLEX’s hopes of a comeback.

Phoenix rookie Matthew Wright was an assist shy of an unwelcome quadruple-double with 12 points, 12 rebounds and 10 turnovers.

Sean Anthony scored 21 points for the lowly Road Warriors, who are tied with the Meralco Bolts for a league-worst record at 2-7.