Saudi Gazette MANILA — The Alaska Aces started cold but waxed fiery hot in the endgame to hack out a 105-89 victory over the Phoenix Fuel Masters in the PBA Commissioner's Cup Friday night. Replacement import Shane Edwards once again paced the Aces with 33 points and 16 boards in 32 minutes of play while Vic Manuel added 26 points on a sparkling 11-of-16 shooting in just 24 minutes. Sonny Thoss chipped in with 12 markers. Alaska nailed its third straight win to take solo second place in the team standings with a 3-1 win-loss card. Conversely, Phoenix suffered its third straight loss to drop to a 1-3 card. The Aces stepped on the gas in the second half to take full command of the game after allowing the Fuel Masters to score 30 points in the second quarter. Ratcheting up their defense, the Aces forced the Fuel Masters to commit 26 errors that translated to 33 turnover points and 26 off the fast break. Alaska also limited Phoenix to just 41 points in the second half. Kevinn Pinkney paced the Fuel Masters with 27 points, 12 boards, three assists, two blocks, and two steals against eight turnovers. RR Garcia posted 15 points while JC Intal and Willy Wilson added 14 and 10 markers, respectively in a losing effort for Phoenix. Rain or Shine 121, NLEX 94 With seven players scoring in double digits, the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters snapped a three-game losing streak, smothering the NLEX Road Warriors, 121-94. New ROS import Antoine Wright showed marked improvement as he led the Painters on both ends of the court from start to finish, posting a near triple double of 20 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in 26 minutes of action. Wright also shone on defense, limiting streak-shooting NBA veteran Al Thornton to just 19 points. Jewel Ponferrada scored 15 markers and Raymond Almazan had 14 for ROS. Jericho Cruz, Jeff Chan and JR Quinahan each added 12 markers while Mav Ahanmisi chimed in 10. Their 27-point victory was a huge morale booster for the Painters who suffered a humiliating 26-point defeat against the Alaska Aces last Saturday. ROS tied their NLEX at 2-3 win-loss card in the standings. The Painters dominated the Road Warriors in all departments, scoring 33 points off turnovers and 26 fast-break points, dishing out 33 assists, and outrebounding their opponents, 58-42. ROS raced to a double-digit lead quickly and never allowed NLEX to come close. Game Saturday: San Miguel Beermen (2-1) vs. Meralco Bolts (5-0).
