Petron ousts Rain or Shine, sets up finals clash with San Mig
Petron Blaze just needed one decisive onslaught to pull away and dethrone injury-saddled Rain or Shine Monday night.
Thanks to its jarring 16-to-nothing run to start the third canto, the Boosters completely left the Elasto Painters behind and essayed a masterful 110-89 victory to clinch their ticket to the PBA Governors Cup finals at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
Import Elijah Millsap sizzled with 34 points, 18 of them coming in a fiery showing in the third period where he teamed with playmaker Alex Cabagnot to help Petron turn a tight contest into a romp over the desperate Rain or Shine crew.
Gunner Marcio Lassiter bounced back from a dismal shooting in Game 3 that they lost 87-92 last Saturday, firing away a career-high of 27 points, spiked by seven triples, on top of 12 rebounds that underscored the Boosters’ tremendous firepower.
More than showing the exit to Rain or Shine, Petron also sealed a titanic clash with sister team San Mig Coffee in a best-of-seven finals showdown that gets going this Friday at the MOA Arena.
Import Arizona Reid single-handedly carried the fight for the Painters with 41 points as gunner Jeff Chan, who tallied 18 points the last time out, suffered an ankle injury in the first half and never returned to action.
The Main Man: This time, Elijah Millsap made sure there wouldn’t be any meltdown.
After missing 17 of his 21 attempts from the field two days ago, the younger brother of Atlanta Hawks forward Paul played like a man possessed notably in the third canto as he fired on all cylinder in scoring all but 16 of the team’s 34-pointe explosion.
Millsap also added eight rebounds, three assists and a steal, proving he’s worthy to raise the league’s Best Import award.
Honorable Mentions: Teaming up with Millsap during that unforgiving offensive charge was guard Alex Cabagnot, who scattered 10 big points, including a pair of triples. He went on to finish with 23 markers plus eight assists, four rebounds and two steals.
When both Millsap and Cabagnot cooled off, Marcio Lassiter stepped up to the plate and fired one big triple with regularity, including four in the fourth canto that doused cold water on the Painters’ repeated rallies.
The Cal State Fullerton standout more than made up for his 11-point showing in Game 3 with career-best in points (27) and three-points made (7).
Game Turning Point: After trading blows in the first half marked by 12 lead changes and six deadlocks, the Boosters showed up with fire in their eyes in the third canto, scoring 16 unanswered points behind the exploits of import Elijah Millsap and Alex Cabagnot.
Despite trailing by as many as 25 points, the Painters threatened to within 10, the last at 79-89, but Petron guard Marcio Lassiter hit another booming triple, making sure of the Boosters’ cruise control.
They Said It:
Petron Blaze coach Gee Abanilla: “I’m very, very happy about this win. I give credit to Rain or Shine. They pushed us to the limit even with a depleted line-up. Aside from the leadership that I learned from coach Yeng (Guiao), I learned how to be competitor. It’s gonna be a tough match-up against San Mig Coffee, a very potent and a well-coached team. We have the work cut out for us.”
Petron Blaze guard Marcio Lassiter: "It feels good. We played hard and fought through adversity. We did us a team and that’s what we have been doing all conference long. Everyone has to step up.
The scores:
Petron Blaze (110) – Millsap 34, Lassiter 27, Cabagnot 23, Fajardo 9, Santos 8, Lutz 2, Kramer 2, Miranda 2, Tubid 2, Lanete 1, Isip 0.
Rain or Shine (89) – Reid 41, Belga 10, Arana 9, Quinahan 7, Norwood 6, Tang 5, Ibanes 5, Tiu 3, Matias 3, Uyloan 0, Cruz 0, Chan 0.
