By JONAS TERRADO
4:30 p.m. – GlobalPort vs San Miguel
7 p.m. – Magnolia vs TNT KaTropa
The Columbian Dyip erased a 14-point deficit before their defense broke down the Phoenix Fuel Masters in the fourth quarter to secure a 115-107 victory last night and snap a three-game skid in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Import John Fields had 29 points, 26 rebounds and six assists but got plenty of help from Glenn Khobuntin, Rashawn McCarthy and Jerramy King as the Dyip restored their quest for a quarterfinals berth after three disappointing losses by an average margin of 21.7 points.
Coach Ricky Dandan’s Columbian side improved to 4-5 for seventh place while dealing Phoenix its third consecutive defeat.
Khobuntin led all Columbian locals in scoring with 18 points, McCarthy had 15 points while King also made 15 after posting just a single combined in the past two games.
Phoenix fell to ninth place at 3-5 despite 34 points and 22 rebounds from import Eugene Phelps. Matthew Wright had 32 points on 12-of-21 shooting.
The Fuel Masters even led 75-73 at the start of the fourth quarter, but the Dyip took command behind Fields, Khobuntin, McCarthy and King with their much-maligned defense finally responding after defeats to Magnolia, TNT KaTropa and San Miguel.
Key stops allowed Columbian to score most of its points in transition, leading by eight points on several occasions at the midway point of the period.
Not even Wright’s late offensive burst could save Phoenix from continuing its woes after holding a 29-15 lead late in the first quarter.
Phoenix held another 14-point lead, 39-25, in the second but Khobuntin scored seven the rest of the way to narrow the gap to 48-44 at the half.
Alaska and Magnolia were playing at presstime, with the former looking to extend its winning streak to six games despite handing Calvin Abueva an indefinite suspension for his sudden disappearance and Jeron Teng expected to miss significant amount games after being stabbed in a brawl last weekend.
Magnolia paraded new import Justin Jackson for the first time, replacing Curtis Kelly after two straight defeats.
The scores:
COLUMBIAN 115 – Fields 29, Khobuntin 18, King 15, McCarthy 15, Camson 13, Tubid 10, Escoto 6, Ababou 3, Sara 2, Cahilig 2, Corpuz 2, Celda 0.
PHOENIX 107 – Phelps 34, Wright 32, Perkins 14, Revilla 5, Intal 5, Wilson 5, Chan 4, Mendoza 2, Kramer 2, Chua 2, Jazul 2, Gamboa 0, Dehesa 0.
Quarters: 17-29; 44-48; 73-75; 115-107.