A BAD start did not deter Alaska from achieving its purpose.
The Aces capped their brilliant comeback with a sterling fourth quarter to hurdle Phoenix Super LPG 105-99 last night in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Smart 5G-powered AUF Sports Arena.
While trying to stop Phoenix gunner Matthew Wright, Mike Digregorio also took time to toss in 14 of his 21 points in the final canto that saw the Aces outscore the Fuel Masters 34-22.
With Vic Manuel adding 10 of his 24 points, Alaska took a hefty 97 -82 lead before weathering Phoenix’s attempts at a comeback in the last four minutes.
The win, their second straight, jacked the Aces’ record to 5-3 while pulling the Fuel Masters down to 4-3.
“I can’t be anymore prouder because we really showed the resiliency that we talked about,” Alaska coach Jeffrey Cariaso said after the game that saw his team start out listless, resulting in as much as a 14-point deficit in the second period.
“We had to dig deep,” added Cariaso. “Each and every game there’s always a different challenge “
Wright finished with a game-high 27 points, but 13 of those came when Alaska’s defense let up a bit. — Noli Cortez
