By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter

THE Phoenix Petroleum Fuel Masters got on the winning track in the PBA Philippine Cup after beating the Kia Picanto, 125-102, yesterday in the curtain-raiser at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City.

Tripped in their debut in the season-opening tournament of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), the Fuel Masters got up and used a strong start to the game to defeat the Picanto and book their first win.

Phoenix opened things with an 8-2 blast in the first three minutes of the contest.

It would steadily build on the cushion behind solid ball distribution and balanced scoring to establish a 24-14 advantage at the end of the opening frame.

The Fuel Masters continued to pound on the Picanto in the second canto as Matthew Wright, Justin Chua and JC Intal began hitting their shots.

They built their lead to as high as 20 points a couple of times, the last one at 51-31, before Eric Camson provided some boost for Kia with 11 straight points to finish the quarter and trim their deficit to just 13 points, 53-40, by the halftime break.

Led by forward Jackson Corpuz, the Picanto were able to narrow the gap some more to seven points, 55-48, in the first three minutes of the third quarter.

But Phoenix would eventually find its bearing to respond, going on a 6-2 run thereafter to give itself some distance anew, 61-50, at the 7:51 mark of the frame.

It would sustain control the rest of the way, even building up its lead to 22 points, 86-64, with 36 seconds to play in the quarter before settling for an 88-69 advantage at the end of the third.

Despite pretty much in command, the Fuel Masters continued to be aggressive in the payoff period.

The Picanto tried to make up for lost ground but the Fuel Masters would not allow them to have much space to work on, continuing to be on top of things.

Phoenix extended its lead to 25 points, 104-79, with 7:19 remaining on the game and then set out to the big win.

Messrs. Wright, Chua and Intal each had 15 points to lead Phoenix with Gelo Alolino. RJ Jazul, Jason Perkins, Doug Kramer and Joseph Eriobu scoring 11 points or better.

Rashawn McCarthy, meanwhile, paced Kia with 22 points with Messrs. Camson and Corpuz contributing 13 and 12 points, respectively.

“Following our loss in our first game against San Miguel, I told the players not to change their mind-set and continue to be aggressive. We worked hard in practice and entered the game not underestimating Kia and the result was very positive,” said Phoenix coach Louie Alas in the postgame press conference.

Phoenix (1-1) next plays on Jan. 7 against the league-leading NLEX Road Warriors while Kia (0-2) takes on the Magnolia Hotshots on Jan. 10.

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