PBA: Matthew Wright catches fire as Phoenix holds off NorthPort | Inquirer Sports

PBA: Matthew Wright catches fire as Phoenix holds off NorthPort

/ 07:38 PM June 26, 2019

MANILA, Philippines–Phoenix Pulse carved out a gutsy 97-87 decision over red-hot NorthPort, tabbing a much-needed victory in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup in Wednesday night’s action Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.

Matthew Wright came through for the FuelMasters with 28 points and six assists, including a pair of tough triples just when the Batang Pier were trying to mount a comeback.

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“You just blank out. I’m just happy my teammates put me in a position to succeed,” Wright said in a televised interview. “We did a much better job [on defense] today. As long as we rotate on defense, scrambling, we have a chance (in winning).”

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Coach Louie Alas, though, thought it was his charges’ effort in the glass that pulled them through and propelled them to 3-4 record.

“We’re becoming consistent once again with our strength, which is our rebounding,” coach Louie Alas said. “56 to 46 in rebounding, so [that meant] extra possessions for us.”

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Three more from Phoenix’s primary unit registered double-digit scores, including Richard Howell who posted 18 points to go with 15 assists and three steals.

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Mo Tautuaa and Kevin Ferrer anchored NorthPort, scoring 19 and 18 points, respectively. Robert Bolick and skipper Sean Anthony both had twin-digit scores off the bench.

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“They’re a good team. First place for a reason. But we just had to pick our poison,” Wright said of the new-look Batang Pier who were undefeated in their last four outings prior the match.

The Batang Pier dropped to 7-2 in the midseason conference.

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Up next for Phoenix is crowd darling Barangay Ginebra, which is riding on a two-game winning streak. They tangle this Friday at the same venue.

NorthPort’s penultimate assignment is Columbian, which it goes up against a week from now at the Big Dome.

POST-GAME INTERVIEW

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TAGS: Matthew Wright, PBA, Phoenix Fuel Masters, Sports

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