Barefield gets sweet revenge

MANILA, Philippines — For Sedrick Barefield, Blackwater’s first-round loss to Phoenix, where he was virtually a non-factor, left an unpalatable feeling.

So when he got a quick shot at washing it away and helping the Bossing exact revenge eight days later, the Fil-Am sniper jumped at the opportunity.

Barefield rifled in 11 points in the fourth quarter as he anchored the Bossing’s 29-14 closing barrage that resulted in a 106-100 payback win in the PBA Governors’ Cup last night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

The sophomore guard finished with 26 in his “redemption game” from his meager 10-point, 5-of-19 shooting performance in his team’s 93-102 loss to the Fuel Masters at the end of Round 1 last July 28.

“I feel like I had some of my best games against Phoenix so not having a great game against them last time kind of put a bad taste in the mouth,’’ said Barefield, who shot 11-of-24 this time.

“But honestly, as a team that was the vibe – we knew we’re better than how we performed last game so we kind of want to be more aggressive and not settle as much. I think we did a better job of that today.”

The vengeful victory put Blackwater (3-3) back in business after going on a three-game spiral to end the initial salvo of action in Group B.

“We knew today was important, if we lost, it would become tough for us going forward. It was do or die for us so that set the tone,” said Barefield.

“We know what kind of team we are when we’re getting stops and executing offensively. When we do that, things go well for us,” he added.

Kentrell Barkley produced 34 points and 16 rebounds for Blackwater, which also drew heroics from RK Ilagan in scoring (15) and quality minutes from Jed Mendoza and Troy Mallilin.

The Bossing laid to waste BJ Johnson’s 45-point explosion for the Fuel Masters, who slipped to 4-2. Blackwater’s defenders held the Phoenix import to only five in the last 12 minutes.

The match featured a seesaw battle.

Phoenix seized a 42-32 lead in the second quarter only for Blackwater to make a furious counter assault, 30-17, to wrest a 62-59 edge at the turn.

The Fuel Masters retook control with a 27-15 exchange in the third before the Bossing unleashed their finishing kick to take command for good.