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| PBA |
By Ivan Saldajeno
PANABO--Alaska banked on a solid second quarter and withstood one final push by Star to take an 85-69 win in their PBA Governors' Cup clash at the Panabo Sports and Cultural Center on Saturday night.
The Aces outscored the Hotshots, 25-7, in the second period to open a 41-25 halftime cushion, even leading by as high as 20 in the third quarter.
The Hotshots, however, slowly crawled back and found themselves just down by three, 66-69, with 5:49 remaining in the game.
Alaska closed the game on a 16-3 run to finally walk away with only its second win of the season-ending conference, snapping a three-game slide.
LaDontae Henton led the Aces with 27 points, nine rebounds, two assists, four blocks, and one steal, while Calvin Abueva added 10 points, 10 rebounds, four assists, three steals, and two blocks even as Sonny Thoss contributed eight points, 10 rebounds, three assists, and three blocks.
Joel Wright sizzled for 30 points, 22 rebounds, and one block for Star, but he committed five of the team's 20 total errors, 14 coming in the club's lethargic first half alone.
The said 24-minute span took a toll as well on Star offense-wise as the team only made 24-of-77 shots overall. Star slipped to the cellar with a 1-5 record.
Box Scores:
Box Scores:
Alaska 85-Henton 27, Abueva 10, Baclao 8, Thoss 8, Racal 6, Casio 5, Exciminiano 5, Jazul 5, Banchero 3, Galliguez 3, Hontiveros 3, Magat 0, Dela Rosa 0
Star 69-Wright 30, Garcia 15, Pingris 8, Melton 4, Barroca 3, Simon 3, Maliksi 2, Sangalang 2, Yap 2, Brondial 0, Mallari 0, Pascual 0, Reavis 0
Quarterscores: 16-18, 41-25, 57-50, 85-69
Follow him on Twitter: @IvanSaldajeno
Star 69-Wright 30, Garcia 15, Pingris 8, Melton 4, Barroca 3, Simon 3, Maliksi 2, Sangalang 2, Yap 2, Brondial 0, Mallari 0, Pascual 0, Reavis 0
Quarterscores: 16-18, 41-25, 57-50, 85-69
Follow him on Twitter: @IvanSaldajeno
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