ANTIPOLO — San Miguel still took care of business even without two of its most important figures, keeping Macau winless, 123-109, for a triumphant PBA Season 50 Governors’ Cup debut at the Ynares Center here, Tuesday.
The Beermen were without head coach Leo Austria due to health reasons, and June Mar Fajardo was still resting from Gilas duties. Their absences seemed to be a problem when they found themselves getting off to a tepid start.
But they began chipping away at the deficit come the second chapter, then turned it around in the ensuing period. The team finally broke away in the payoff period as the Giant Pandas struggled to readjust, ultimately melting down.
The troika of Jericho Cruz, Rodney Brondial, and George King joined for the 11-0 run that pushed their lead to 108-93 heading into the game’s last six minutes. And that proved to be enough for SMB to put it away,
(C) PBA Images
“Sinasamantala namin na wala pa si June Mar kasi pagbalik ni June Mar, babagal kami nang konti. Pero gusto namin andito siya,” said lead assistant Peter Martin as he called the shots for the meantime with Austria away.
A total of seven players scored in double figures in the win, with King showing the way with 30 points, five rebounds, and seven assists for a solid PBA return.
CJ Perez made 21 points, five rebounds, and four assists. Cruz — who has just gotten off sick bay from his stint with Guam in the recent FIBA World Cup Qualifiers window — delivered 20 points, spiked by a 4-of-7 clip from three.
New guy Jerrick Ahanmisi came through with 16 points, four rebounds, and four assists. Don Trollano had 11 points, while Mo Tautua’a added 10.
Brondial also had 10 points but hauled down 25 of the team’s 53 rebounds as he did a remarkable job filling in for the nine-time MVP. He shot 5-of-5 from the floor and also had seven assists, four steals, and a block in 32 minutes.
“Kailangan kong lumabas sa mundo ng halimaw kasi wala si June Mar. Kailangan mag-effort tayo,” quipped the bruising big man.
The Beermen will try to sustain their momentum when they face Terrafirma on Saturday, July 18, 5:15 PM, still at the Ynares Center here.
(C) PBA Images
De’Vondre Perry, meanwhile, had 25 points and 14 rebounds for Macau, which also received 22 points each from Damian Chongqui and Kobey Lam.
The Giant Pandas fell to 0-2 in Group A and are hoping to arrest their skid this Friday against the Converge FiberXers (1-0) at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
The Scores:
San Miguel 123 – King 30, Perez 21, Cruz 20, Ahanmisi 16, Trollano 11, Tautuaa 10, Brondial 10, Lassiter 5, Ross 0, Hernandez 0, Calma 0, Cahilig 0.
Macau 109 – Perry 25, Chongqui 22, Lam 22, Z. Zhang 10, Chao 9, Liu 8, Cao 8, Li 3, Y. Zhang 2, Zhu 0.
Quarterscores: 24-30, 53-58, 89-86, 123-109.
