MANILA — The Petron Blaze Boosters bounced back from an opening game loss to the Meralco Bolts last Friday with an emphatic 101-95 win against the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings Sunday night in the PBA Governors' Cup at the packed Smart Araneta Coliseum. Petron uncorked an 8-2 run in the final minutes to pull away from a tight game. The victory was the first in the league for new Petron coach Gee Abanilla. It also spoiled the coaching debut for Ginebra of former Petron mentor Ato Agustin. Import Elijah Millsap led five Boosters in double-figures, finishing with 24 points, nine rebounds, five assists, four steals, and two blocks. Marcio Lassiter contributed 23 points, eight of them in the fourth quarter, while new recruit Doug Kramer added 17, 11 of them in the second half. Kramer stood out on defense as he held athletic Ginebra import Dior Lowhorn scoreless in the third quarter. Alex Cabagnot and Arwind Santos also had standout games for Petron, chipping in 18 and 12 points respectively. Lowhorn marked his PBA debut with 29 points and 11 rebounds. Returning from injury, Mark Caguioa scattered 15 points while high-leaper Chris Ellis added 12 for Ginebra. In the first match of Sunday's double-header, Emman Monfort, the smallest man in the league standing just 5'6”, stood tallest as he led the Barako Bull Energy Colas to a tight 90-89 win against the Meralco Bolts. The diminutive point guard knocked in 22 points, 17 of them in the decisive second half as Barako Bull came storming back after being down by eight points, 41-49, at halftime. Import Mike Singletary led Barako Bull with 28 points, including a huge defensive stop on Meralco import Mario West in the last seven seconds. The Bolts had two chances to notch their second win in the tournament but missed both on account of Barako Bull's solid defense. Barako Bull coaching consultant Rajko Toroman paid tribute to new acquisition Dorian Pena for his team's defensive might. Although he did not score a single point, Pena had seven rebounds and was a force to reckon with inside the paint. “Dorian changed everything. His toughness defensively gave us special strength even when he was not making any point,” Toroman said.
