Buffen, Lastimosa catch fire as Magnolia wins 3rd straight

Sports

IMPORT KJ Buffen and Jerom Lastimosa combined for 65 points to lead the Magnolia Hotshots to a third straight win, beating the Phoenix Fuel Masters, 115-101, in the PBA Season 50 Governors' Cup at the Ynares Center Antipolo on Wednesday night, Aug. 12.

Buffen recorded his highest scoring game in the league with 35 points while Lastimosa logged his own personal-best of 30 markers as the Hotshots avenged their 86-98 loss to the Fuel Masters in the first round.

With the win, Magnolia tied Phoenix for second place in Group B with identical 4-3 (win-loss) record.

Phoenix staged a huge third-quarter run to take an 84-82 lead going into the fourth quarter.

Magnolia responded, staging its own blistering attack in the final stanza where it dumped 33 points while limiting Phoenix to just 17 that broke the game wide open.

Mark Barroca added 21 points, six rebounds and four assists, Ian Sangalang tallied 10 points and six boards, while Zav Lucero collected nine points and 10 rebounds for Magnolia.

BJ Johnson scored a game-high 37 points but Phoenix will head to a nine-week break with a second straight defeat.

The league is taking a break to give way to Gilas Pilipinas' campaign in the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers and the Asian Games in Nagoya.

THE SCORES:

MAGNOLIA (115) - Buffen 35, Lastimosa 30, Barroca 21, Sangalang 10, Lucero 9, Andrada 5, Alfaro 3, Dela Rosa 2, Jopia 0, Lee 0, Koon 0.

PHOENIX (101) - Johnson 37, Rivero 16, Tuffin 12, Ballungay 12, Mamuyac 10, Tio 7, Santos 3, Escandor 2, Chua 2, Perkins 0, Delos Santos 0, Reavis 0.QUARTERSCORES: 28-33, 60-49, 82-84, 115-101.(CCM)