By ADRIAN STEWART CO
Converge FiberXers maintained its unbeaten record in the 2022-2023 PBA Governors’ Cup after hacking out a 112-98 victory over Rain or Shine Elasto Painters at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City on Thursday night, February 2.
Jamaal Franklin led the way with a triple-double of 25 points, 15 assists and 13 rebounds, while Justin Arana chipped in 21 markers as the FiberXers surged to first place in the standings with a 4-0 record.
Jeron Teng and Jerrick Balanza added 17 and 12 markers, respectively. Abu Tratter tallied double-double 11 points and 10 rebounds as Alec Stockton contributed 10 points for Converge.
Holding to a slim 52-48 lead at the half, the FiberXers opened the third quarter with consecutive hits from Tratter, Teng, Stockton, and Balanza for a 60-48 lead. Franklin contributed his inside and outside shots as the lead swelled to 84-69.
The Painters attempted to make a run in the fourth quarter as they cut the deficit to as low as 11 points, but the FiberXers answered with shots from Maverick Ahanmisi and Tratter for their biggest lead of 107-87.
Michael Qualls finished with 34 points, including six triples, to go with nine rebounds, while Rey Nambatac chipped in 16 markers as the Painters slumped to their third defeat in as many matches.
In the first game, Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters finally entered the win column after four matches following a 108-97 victory over NorthPort Batang Pier, which dropped to a 0-4 record.
After being down by as much as eight points, the Fuel Masters turned things around in the second quarter behind Du’vaughn Maxwell and Jason Perkins as they built their largest lead of 84-57 on three-pointers by RJ Jazul and Sean Manganti.
The Batang Pier clawed its way back as it trimmed the deficit to 87-92, but the Fuel Masters got an inside hit from Perkins and back-to-back triples by Jazul and Manganti widened the lead anew to 102-88.
Maxwell finished with double-double 26 points and 11 rebounds, Perkins chipped in 26 markers, while Jazul and Manganti contributed 16 and 13 markers, respectively, for the Fuel Masters.
CONVERGE 112 — Franklin 25, Arana 21, Teng 17, Balanza 12, Tratter 11, Stockton 10, Ahanmisi 7, Murrell 5, Racal 2, Tolomia 2, Ambohot 0, Guinto 0.
RAIN OR SHINE 98 — Qualls 34, Nambatac 16, Demusis 8, Mamuyac 8, Santillan 7, Ponferrada 6, Nieto 6, Torres 6, Caracut 3, Asistio 2, Belga 2, Clarito 0, Borboran 0, Yap 0, Ildefonso 0.
Quarterscores: 29-21, 52-48, 84-69, 112-98./ASC, WDJ