MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – Phoenix gave Magnolia a rude debut in the 2018 PBA Commissioner’s Cup as a late Matthew Wright triple completed the Fuel Masters’ 89-87 comeback win over the Hotshots at the Mall of Asia Arena on Sunday, May 6. 

With his team trailing at 85-87, Wright, off a stepback, buried a triple over Rafi Reavis’ outstretched arms with 3.2 seconds remaining to help Phoenix end a 6-game losing streak to the Hotshots. 

The Filipino-Canadian later sank a technical free throw for the final tally as Magnolia got penalized for the excessive timeout called by coach Chito Victolero, who tried to draw up a potential game-tying play but PJ Simon muffed his last-ditch 3-pointer. 

Wright finished with 19 points, 8 assists, 3 rebounds and two steals while import James White chalked up 19 points, 17 rebounds and 3 steals. 

The Fuel Masters, who improved to 2-1, trailed by as much as 16 points before slowly climbing their way back into the game thanks to Willie Wilson, who had 17 points and 9 rebounds.

“We were very, very flat the whole 24 minutes. I told them, ‘It’s not about X and Os,'” said Phoenix head coach Louie Alas.

“Sabi ko ‘Kung may pride kayo, you just play, pero kung ‘di niyo dadalhin ang pride ninyo, we’ll stay here.'”

(I told them, ‘If you have pride, you will just play. But if you will not carry that pride, you cannot move forward.) 

Magnolia held an 84-75 lead with 6 minutes left in the game until Phoenix went on a 10-run blitz to gain the upper hand for the first time in a long while. 

Vernon Macklin paced the Hotshots with 25 points, 17 rebounds and 3 assists. Paul Lee added 20 markers in the loss. 

The Scores:

Phoenix (89): White 19, Wright 19, Wilson 17, Perkins 16, Chan 6, Jazul 4, Chua 3, Intal 2, Kramer 2, Revilla 1, Alolino 0, Mendoza 0

Magnolia (87): Macklin 25, Lee 20, Sangalang 12, Dela Rosa 10, Herndon 6, Jalalon 6, Barroca 5, Simon 2, Brondial 1, Gamalinda 0, Ramos 0, Reavis 0

Quarter scores: 17-24, 45-35, 63-70, 89-87

– Rappler.com