MANILA, Philippines – Eugene Phelps announced his arrival in the PBA in explosive fashion as the import fired 52 points to lead the Phoenix Fuel Masters to a 120-107 victory over the GlobalPort Batang Pier in their PBA Governors Cup showdown Sunday at the Araneta Coliseum.

Phelps finished with 52 points on 18-of-30 shooting, while adding 16 rebounds and six assists, to power the Fuel Masters to their first win of the conference, after losing their first three games.

"It's my mistake not to bring him earlier," admitted Phoenix head coach Ariel Vanguardia, who brought in Phelps to replace Marcus Simmons. "Nothing against Marcus, but Phelps gave us another dimension. We can go to the post, and he was dominant."

"He was El Destructor, which means the destroyer. He showed today why he's the destroyer," Vanguardia said of Phelps, who played collegiate ball in Long Beach State.

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Phelps had 19 points in the first quarter alone, showing off his array of post moves to help the Fuel Masters get off to a 33-26 start. Even when he took a brief rest in the second frame, Phoenix managed to build a double-digit lead, 47-35, thanks to the aggression of Asian import Lee Gwan Hee, whose relentless drives to the hoop forced the GlobalPort defenders to send him to the line.

But an inadvertent elbow from GlobalPort import Mike Glover that hit him in the mouth forced Phelps to sit out a few minutes in the third quarter, as team doctors had to pull a tooth out from his lip.

With Phelps in the locker room, the Batang Pier went on a run, with Stanley Pringle and Glover helping GlobalPort to take a 75-72 lead halfway through the frame.

Phelps returned late in the third quarter and did not miss a beat, scoring five straight points, including a coast-to-coast drive for a slam dunk that put Phoenix up 86-81.

However, it was the Batang Pier that ended the quarter on a strong note, with Glover and Pringle combining for five straight points that made it a one-point game, 85-86, heading into the final quarter.

Phelps, however, would not be stopped. He scored 15 points in the final quarter, including a three-point play with 2:14 to go that pushed Phoenix's lead to nine points, 113-104, and brought his total to 49 points. After Joseph Yeo drained a three-pointer to make it a six-point game, 107-113, with still two minutes left, Phelps found Simon Enciso wide open for a three-pointer of his own that pushed their lead to double-digits, 116-107.

"The good thing is, when he sees the double team, he was able to get shots for our locals," Vanguardia said of Phelps. "Now that we have an inside strength, our inside shooting namin ay nakatulong din."

Phelps capped his spectacular performance with another three-point play with 32 seconds left to bring his total to 52 points – the most points in a PBA debut since Darius Rice scored 56 for Purefoods during his 2008 Fiesta Conference debut against San Miguel.

Hee added 16 points, while Willie Wilson was the highest scoring import with 10 for the Fuel Masters, who shot 57% from the field.

Pringle finished with 27 points, while Glover had 27 points and 17 rebounds for the Batang Pier. Terrence Romeo had 20 points, five rebounds, and four assists.

However, the Batang Pier simply had no answer for Phelps' dominance, and they wound up suffering their fourth loss in a row.

GlobalPort remains the only winless team in the PBA in the Governors Cup.

The scores:

PHOENIX 120 - Phelps 52, Lee 16, J. Wilson 15, W. Wilson 10, Baguio 9, Enciso 6, Pennisi 5, Lanete 4, Cruz 3, Buenafe 0, Caperal 0, Torres 0.

GLOBALPORT 107 - Glover 27, Pringle 27, Romeo 20, Yeo 14, Washington 13, Dehesa 4, Mamaril 2, Isip 0, Kramer 0, Semerad 0, Taha 0.

Quarters: 33-26, 58-53, 86-85, 120-107

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