June Mar Fajardo gave no other reasons for the San Miguel Beermen’s loss in a must-win outing versus the Meralco Bolts.
For the three-time Most Valuable Players, there’s no one else to blame but him alone.
The 6-foot-10’s remorseful take on the loss comes after his running one-hander — one of his signature moves — off a broken play, which could have propelled the Beermen to a 103-102 lead, with less than eight ticks left to play went short.
The Bolts won, 104-101, to complete the epic comeback from 18 points down and snag the coveted win-once playoff incentive.
“Kasalanan ko talaga. Namintis ko yung huling tira ko. Dapat panalo kami e. Good look na yun e,” said Fajardo after the match, where his production of 26 points, eight rebounds, two steals, and three blocks went to naught.
“‘Di ako makakatulog nito mamaya. Sorry, babawi na lang ako.”
Things cannot get any worse for the Beermen. After absorbing the stinging defeat, SMB — after once sitting on top of the 2017 Governor’s Cup standings — have crashed down to the sixth spot.
With that, the Beermen will now face defending champions and third seed Barangay Ginebra in the quarterfinals. And if they want to keep their Grand Slam hopes alive, they have to take down the Gin Kings twice.
“Ngayon kailangan namin dumaan sa butas ng karayom,” lamented Fajardo. “Kailangan namin paghandaan ang Ginebra. Pero sa ngayon pahinga muna kami. Hindi pa naman kami out. May chance pa kaming manalo.
“Kailangan namin mag-stay positive lang. One game at a time.”
