The Petron Blaze Boosters used a furious fourth quarter charge to take a 100-84 victory over the San Mig Coffee Mixers in Game One of the Governors’ Cup finals on Friday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
After scoring just 59 points in the first three quarters, the Boosters poured down 41 huge points in the final period to book the win in their first match in the championship round since winning the tournament in 2011.
“I just thought we played a great fourth quarter,” said Petron coach Gee Abanilla, who was victorious in his first finals game as a PBA head coach. “I’m surprised also. We just got into a rhythm.”
Petron made 7-of-11 shots from beyond the arc in the final period, to break down the tight defense of the Mixers.
“They got rolling with their three-point shooting,” said San Mig Coffee coach Tim Cone. “When they started making their threes, they got a little bit ahead.”
Elijah Millsap had his third triple-double of the tournament, finishing with 35 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists.
“He’s just showing different dimensions of his game,” said Abanilla. “Even though he scores a lot, he still shares the ball.”
Chris Lutz provided a big spark in the fourth quarter, making 3-of-3 shots from three-point distance to score all 11 of his points in the period. Lutz and Marcio Lassiter, who had eight points in the final quarter, played so well that star forward Arwind Santos didn’t see action anymore for the Boosters after the third period.
Marqus Blakely led San Mig Coffee with 23 points and 14 rebounds, but scored just two points in the fourth quarter. Mixers superstar James Yap struggled all game, scoring just eight points, all in the final period.
Abanilla downplayed the importance of winning the game in the context of the best-of-seven matchup, which resumes with Game Two on Sunday at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.
“This means nothing as of now. It’s a long series.”
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