An undermanned San Miguel still proved too much for a spent Blackwater side after cruising to a 115-78 victory to regain solo third in the PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup, Sunday evening at the Philsports Arena in Pasig.
Only 10 warm bodies were present for the Beermen with Marcio Lassiter, Jeron Teng, and Juami Tiongson all out due to sore eyes. Still, that was hardly a problem as the remaining pieces more than made up for those absences.
As usual, CJ Perez and June Mar Fajardo showed the way. The Gilas Pilipinas tandem spearheaded their strong second-quarter showing toward a 52-39 lead at the half that set up the massive breakaway shortly after the break.
The match was all but decided as early as the third, when the duo plus Chris Ross and Don Trollano joined hands for an 11-0 run for a 63-39 lead before inflating the cushion to 33, 78-45, behind JM Calma with 3:37 left.
SMB poured a total of 62 points in the middle quarters toward its third win in a row, hiking its card to 6-2 to break a tie with Ginebra (5-2) in the standings.
(C) PBA Images
“The players were ready,” lauded head coach Leo Austria. “Every player can be a starter on our team. But what we’re trying to do is healthy competition.”
Perez top-scored for San Miguel with 20 points. Fajardo, on the other hand, notched yet another double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds.
Calma finished with 16 points and six rebounds, collecting much of his output during the final period — much to the delight of his teammates as the 6-foot-6 big man submitted his best performance by far with the powerhouse.
Trollano supplied 15 points. Jericho Cruz delivered 13 points and eight assists while Ross added 11 in the rout that saw the Beermen dish 28 dimes.
San Miguel will shoot for a fourth straight win when it takes on Rain or Shine on June 7 at the Cagayan de Oro City Convention Center.
(C) PBA Images
Christian David, on the other hand, had 15 points, six rebounds, and five assists to lead a Bossing crew that struggled to keep up after going toe-to-toe with the Kings — but ultimately lost — some 48 hours ago in the same venue.
RK Ilagan made 14 points while BJ Andrade chipped in 10 markers as Sedrick Barefield struggled to play, reportedly due to a hamstring issue.
Blackwater fell to its fifth straight defeat and is now sporting a 1-7 card, thus making its playoff chances dimmer.
The team will look to keep its head above the water when it faces TNT on June 6, Friday, at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
The Scores:
San Miguel 115 – Perez 20, Fajardo 17, Calma 16, Trollano 15, Cruz 13, Ross 11, Tautuaa 9, Cahilig 8, Rosales 6, Brondial 0.
Blackwater 78 – David 15, Ilagan 14, Andrade 10, Caperal 8, Mallilin 6, Tratter 5, Barefield 5, Chua 4, Mitchell 3, Guinto 2, Escoto 2, Ayonayon 2, Casio 0.
Quarterscores: 24-22, 52-39, 86-57, 115-78.
