Petron Blaze Wins Import Recruitment As They Beat Air 21 In 2011 PBA Governors Cup: They Made A Wise Decision

Of all the imports in the PBA Governor's Cup 2011 there are only two that impressed me because of their fine showing. The first import was Curtis Stinson and the second import was Jeremy Wise. Stinson's passing abilities was excellent but I have not seen the other aspects of his game. His scoring skills and his slashing skills. In his last game against Powerade he didn't score that much he only showed his passing skills in that game. I thought he was the best of all the other imports in the Governor's Cup but with the arrival of Petron's Jeremy Wise and after seeing his complete package performance last night, I guess he's better than Curtis Stinson. Yeah they are two different players with unique styles but when you look at Wise, he's a more complete player, an NBA type of player who can score at will and who can pass the ball well at the same time. In their game against Air 21 last night he's the main reason why they won the game. The score was 115-106 in favor of Petron.

Fresh from the United States, Wise didn't take a rest just to help his team get their first win in the Governor's Cup. With his very convincing performance, scoring 33 points right from the bat. I noticed that he really plays and looks like Rajon Rondo. He is ultra fast and he also loves getting plenty of steals. He also jumps really high like JJ Sullinger, the former import of the Talk 'n Text. He also has a great outside shot like Michael Redd. In short he's a complete player. Name it he has it. He's really an NBA type of a player. Air 21 can't stop him. He's a monster.

The sad thing for for Petron is that their leading scorer, Jay Washington got injured in the first quarter. He heard a pop in his left foot. That's the scariest part for Petron. He might be out indefinitely if that is a serious injury. Let's pray for Jay Washington. Luckily, their 6'4 wing man, the former King Tamaraw, Arwind Santos showed some brilliance in this game. He's a perfect fit for their import as he was always ready to receive the nice drop passes of Jeremy Wise. He didn't waste any of those nice assists as he had 15 points, 21 rebounds and 5 blocks in this game. His points came mostly from the inside. I really believe that Arwind Santos is more effective when he's scoring inside and he should lessen his outside attempts. Looking back, that was his game when he was still playing for FEU wherein he was really unstoppable.

Fearfully, here's what Ato Agustin said about Jay Washington's injury. He said:

“He (Washington) heard something pop out in his left foot. Hopefully, it’s not a serious injury.”

On the other side, Don Don Hontiveros and Danny Seigle had one of their best games for Air 21. I bet it has something to do with proving to Petron that they still got game. Hontiveros had one of those nights wherein he just can't miss. Remember this if he gets two of his shots go in, that's the start of his big night. He scored 32 points in this game. His partner, Danny Siegle on the other hand had 17 points in this game while their import, Alpha Bangura had 24 points. Bangura's points in this game could have been higher if he did not took some ill-advice shots. His poise was not evident in this game just like in their game against Rain or Shine. This wrong act of his should be corrected. Yeah he's their import but he needs to be the leader of his team and part of being a leader is knowing when to take the matter in your own hands and when to pass the ball to your open teammates. He will be more effective if he will be able to involve more his teammates in their offensive sets.

As a result, Petron chalked up their first win while Air 21 went down in the cellar in the Governor's Cup Team Standings. I believe that this win increased the confidence of Petron. More importantly they now know that they have found a treasure in their import, Jeremy Wise. For me, arguably, by far, they have the best import in the league right now. He will fortify that status when they face Ginebra on Sunday. Stinson will have something to say about that.

Here are the complete scores courtesy of PBA.ph.:

Petron 115 - Wise 33, Santos 15, Tugade 14, Al-Hussaini 13, Cabagnot 12, Duncil 9, Pennisi 8,
Washington 7, Yeo 4, Guevarra 0.

Air 21 106 - Hontiveros 32, Bangura 24, Seigle 17, Espiritu 10, Sharma 8, Avenido 8, Urbiztondo 5,
Arboleda 2, Salvador 0, Canaleta 0, Artadi 0.

Quarters: 21-26, 58-50, 83-80, 115-106