PBA: Petron Blaze get fifth win in a row, bounce former consultant Toroman's Barako Bull

(Updated 7:06pm) Ronald Tubid made sure there would be no comebacks for his former team, Barako Bull Energy Cola. Two clutch triples in the endgame gave Tubid entry into the 5000 points club, but more importantly, clinched the game for the Petron Blaze Boosters, as they trounced the side of their former consultant Rajko Toroman, 91-78, Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. The win was Petron's fifth in a row, improving them to 5-1. Barako on the other hand, continued to slump, as they failed to bounce back after handing Barangay Ginebra their first win of the conference. They skid down to 3-3 in the standings. Tubid ironically was a member of Barako Bull last conference, prior to an offseason trade, while Toroman had been consultant for the first part of the Philippine Cup with Petron. Petron led wire-to-wire as import Renaldo Balkman and the rest of the Blaze Boosters had their way in the shaded area against a Barako Bull squad which seemed to be going through the motions for most of the match. Balkman's hustle led to him being named Best Player of the Game, tallying 33 points, 14 rebounds, four assists and four steals. "He can defend all positions, from the point guard to the center any team, even in the NBA," said Petron head coach Olsen Racela. "He has great instincts, which is why he's got a lot of interceptions tonight. His intensity and his energy has rubbed off on all the players." Balkman drew praise for his intensity and his emergence as one of the most prolific imports in the league. "That's how I am everywhere, even when I was in the NBA. Everybody loved me because I play my game like it's my last," said Balkman. "If I get my teammates going, I get going as well. I'm the shortest import, but I think I've got the biggest heart." However, at the onset of the fourth period, Barako Bull woke up on defense and actively contested Petron's shot attempts. The stops added some fuel to their offense, yielding an 15-4 run, highlighted by three-pointers by Mac Macapagal and Allein Maliksi. Danny Seigle and Evan Brock did work inside the lane as well to make it a 74-62 game with under five minutes to play. Barako Bull's momentum was cut short though when head consultant Rajko Toroman was assessed a technical for excessive protesting after Balkman was awarded free throws on a drive. Marcio Lassiter missed the technical attempt, but Balkman made two from the line. Petron then went for the kill in spectacular fashion: Balkman completed a fastbreak and-one, and Ronald Tubid followed it up with two three-pointers,a buzzer-beater and a four-point play, to put the game well out of reach, 86-68, with under three minutes remaining in the game. With those two long-range bombs, Tubid thus became the 66th player in PBA history to reach 5,000 points. Racela felt that his squad had room to improve in the final quarter. "I'm still not yet used to the feeling of coaching," he said. "As a player siguro kampante ka na, but as a coach a 20-point lead is not enough. You still want things to run smoothly and want your team to defend properly." Racela rued that his team missed foul shots, but said his squad exhibited a good team effort overall. Arwind Santos tallied 14 points and seven rebounds, while June Mar Fajardo and Ronald Tubid each added 10 points, along with six and eight rebounds, respectively. The Blaze Boosters asserted their size advantage in the first quarter, as June Mar Fajardo opened the game with a turnaround in the post. Renaldo Balkman scored Petron's next six, capping it with a transition dunk for an 8-0 lead. Barako Bull called a timeout to regroup, and they bounced back in a hurry. Drives by Jonas Villanueva and Evan Brock sandwiched a four-point play by Allein Maliksi, 10-8. Josh Urbiztondo drained back-to-back threes for Barako Bull but they couldn't close the gap in the final four minutes. Petron was just too much as Balkman had his way in the lane, scoring six of their next nine. Dorian Pena also snuck in a lay-up as time expired to give the Blaze Boosters a 21-16 lead after the first period. The Petron reserves increased their lead at the onset of the third quarter. Danny Seigle tried to support a limping Barako Bull offense while four different Blaze Boosters chipped in to extend the lead to eight. When the starters returned to the game, Petron's energy on the offensive end paid off. Fajardo and Denok Miranda both scored off put-backs to make it a 35-24 lead, with under five minutes to play. Barako Bull would have just one more field goal before the end of the second quarter. Meanwhile Petron's ball pressure and turnover buckets left them in the dust, as the Blaze Boosters ended the half on a 10-3 run, 45-27. Petron got a boost from second-chance points (10-2) and and turnover points (14-9) at the half. Seigle led Barako Bull in scoring by halftime, making 4-of-7 from the field (57.1 percent). The rest of the team though was 7-of-29, or 24.1 percent. After halftime, Barako Bull seemed to show signs of life as Evan Brock roused the crowd with a put-back slam. But they couldn't gain any traction as Petron poured on the points, and the lead ballooned to 52-31 on Balkman's and-one transition lay-up. Jonas Villanueva and Maliksi then connected from the field, but Barako Bull gave up points as soon as they registered them. Arwind Santos slipped into his groove offensively, scoring nine of the Blaze Boosters' next 14 markers. Back-to-back treys by Santos and Jay Washington then widened the margin, 66-41, with two and a half minutes to play in the period. Sean Anthony won a small moral victory for Barako Bull, scoring three of their last six points for a 68-47 tally after three quarters. Both teams had sub-par performances from the charity stripe. Petron was 12-of-26 (46.2 percent) while Barako Bull was 20-of-37 (54.1 percent). Petron out-rebounded Barako Bull, 59-46, including 22-12 on the offensive glass. Petron also shot better, going 36-of-87 (41.4 percent) while Barako Bull was 26-of-68 (38.2 percent). Evan Brock compiled 20 points, 24 rebounds and four blocks for Barako Bull. Danny Seigle added 17 points and five rebounds, while Sean Anthony tallied 12 points and six boards. - AMD, GMA News The scores: PETRON 91 - Balkman 33, Santos 14, Fajardo 10, Tubid 10, Lassiter 6, Miranda 4, Pena 4, Lanete 3, Yeo 3, Washington 3, Sison 1, Faundo 0 BARAKO 78 - Brock 20, Seigle 17, Anthony 12, Maliksi 9, Urbiztondo 6, Macapagal 5, Allado 5, Villanueva 4, Weinstein 0, Kramer 0, Intal 0 Quarters: 21-16, 45-27, 68-47, 91-78