Aces set Petron ablaze in crucial tiff

MANILA, Philippines - Jason Forte carried the load for his struggling teammates as Alaska Milk bounced back from a loss 48 hours ago, pulling off a crucial 88-81 win over Petron Blaze in the second playdate of the PBA Governors Cup semifinal round at the Smart Araneta Coliseum last night.

Forte put in a PBA-career best of 36 points and stood at the forefront of a strong Alaska wind-up, leading the Aces to their sixth win in 10 games overall in the season-ending tourney.

“It’s a good rebound from a bad loss,” said Alaska coach Tim Cone of their seven-point conquest of Petron following an 18-point loss to Talk n Text Friday.

“LA (Tenorio) and Sonny (Thoss) were tired from last night’s game (against the visiting NBA team). And of course we’re missing Cyrus Baguio. Jason (Forte) stepped up in place of our stars, and that’s what team is all about,” Cone also said.

Forte also came through with 16 rebounds and three assists, and got support from Tony dela Cruz and Bonbon Custodio as Alaska survived Tenorio’s and Thoss’ so-so games, getting even with the Boosters who handed them an 81-82 overtime loss in their elims meeting.

“We’re physically and mentally tired. It’s seen in our body language, and we talked about it at the half. We returned finding something positive to build on,” said Cone.

Forte poured in 17 points while Dela Cruz and Custodio combined for 15 to lead Alaska in a rally from a 37-44 halftime lead.

The Aces caught up at 55-all toward the end of the third and roared on to beat the Boosters on a 24-7 closing run.

Ahead by only two at 83-81, the Aces finished off the Boosters by holding them scoreless in the final 1:04 of play.

Forte no longer scored in that stretch but grabbed key rebounds to help the Aces in their 5-0 wind-up.

Custodio, playing in place of the injury-stricken Baguio, finished with 11 points, six rebounds and two steals while Dela Cruz ended up with 10 points, seven rebounds and one assist.

Tenorio and Thoss, playing a third game in three nights, wound up with a combined output of only 10 points.

The Boosters suffered a second straight defeat and slid down to 5-4. They lost their last two games with import Anthony Grundy in tow.