Thirty-two days after celebrating winning the ABL championship together, San Miguel Alab Pilipinas world imports Renaldo Balkman and Justin Brownlee shared the hardcourt once again. But this time around, they were on opposite ends, as Balkman and the San Miguel Beermen took on Brownlee and the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel.
The SM Mall of Asia Arena was packed for the evening. Joining the crowd were ABL Local Most Valuable Player Bobby Ray Parks, Jr. and Alab head coach Jimmy Alapag.
As expected, the game was epic.
Though both teams are owned by the same umbrella corporation, the contest was highly competitive as both squads needed to take home the win.
But in the end, it was Balkman’s Beermen who outlasted Ginebra in overtime, 104-97.
As the dust settled, the Puerto Rican import made sure to go to Brownlee after the game.
“I just told him good game. Like I told y’all before, may the best man win,” shared the 33-year-old reinforcement.
“At the end of the day we won, he’s still my brother you know what I’m saying?
“We gotta go in tomorrow with practice and get ready for the next game. But it was a hell of a game tonight by both of us. It came down to the end. It was one hell of a game,” the former NBA pro, who finished the game with 27 points, 11 rebounds, and three blocks, added.
Though scoring just four points in the final 17 minutes of the game, the reigning co-ABL Defensive Player of the Year locked down Brownlee in the final frame, holding him down to an 0-for-7 clip during that stretch.
And the 6-foot-8 big man relished the intensity that he and Brownlee displayed all through out.
“Man, I mean, it’s a great match-up. It was two guys playing hard, two guys in a must-win situation,” Balkman expressed. “And I came out with a win. It’s not just me and Brownlee, it’s a team game. A lot of people were saying me vs. him, I didn’t see it like that.
“I’m a team player, I’ll get my team involved. Same thing with him, I know he thinks the same way. If you don’t play team basketball you’ll lose,” he pointed out.
With the highly-anticipated match-up done with, Balkman and the Beermen are setting their sights on the next assignment.
“We take it one game a a time. Tonight is one of the games where again, like I said last time, it was a must-win for us. One game at a time. On to the next and prepare.”
