THE Alaska Aces kept their bid for a grand finale in the PBA alive, as they defeated the NLEX Road Warriors, 93-79, in the PBA Governors’ Cup quarterfinals on March 16, 2022 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.The inspiring victory set up a winner-take-all match for a spot in the semifinals on Saturday.For a while, it appeared as if the Aces were going to bid goodbye to the league with a whimper as they trailed by 16 early on. However, Alaska regrouped and uncorked a massive 20-2 run to erase the deficit and take a 40-38 advantage into halftime.Mike Tolomia then sizzled in the third quarter, scoring all 10 of his points in that stretch to help Alaska continue its surge and build a 64-55 lead heading to the final canto. The Aces then kept their foot on the gas pedal and extended their lead to a high of 17 before marching to the win.New import Mark Saint Fort had a solid debut for the Aces, producing 17 points and 14 rebounds. Jeron Teng added 16 points and six boards, while Abu Tratter had 12 markers and 10 boards. Yousef Taha also gave the Aces a lift off the bench as he almost had a double-double of nine points and 12 rebounds.All in all, Alaska lorded over the glass, grabbing 63 rebounds to NLEX’s 47.NLEX got 25 points and 16 rebounds from new import Cameron Clark, who was brought in to replace former import, KJ McDaniels. The former Houston Rocket had to fly back to the United States to tend to the birth of his child. Kevin Alas added 17 markers while Don Trollano chipped in 12.