Orlando Johnson proved to be the bane to his former team as San Miguel dealt Barangay Ginebra another loss, 110-102, to get back on track in the 2022 PBA Governors’ Cup, Sunday night at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
The former Gin King flirted with a triple-double, finishing with 31 points on an efficient 12-of-19 shooting from the field, 10 rebounds, and eight assists to power the Beermen to their fourth win in the season-ending conference.
Ten of his points came in the third quarter, where he joined hands with CJ Perez for seven straight points to end the period with an 86-73 advantage.
And when the opposition threatened in the final frame that saw them close to as near as five, Johnson hit a triple to make it a nine-point gap. He then hit the game-sealing jumper, 110-100, with 45.7 seconds left to play.
SMB head coach Leo Austria was definitely happy to see his import play such a way after a 12-point outing in his first game versus TNT last Wednesday, which saw him shoot just 3-for-22 from the floor in the 96-81 loss.
“I’m happy to see him now, playing (to) the expectation we’re looking for from him. Nag-take charge siya,” lauded the champion mentor.
Perez had himself an impressive night as well, scoring a conference-high 23 points on a 50-percent clip alongside a game-best five steals.
June Mar Fajardo and Marcio Lassiter finished with 13 markers apiece, with the reigning six-time Most Valuable Player adding 10 boards to his name in the victory that brought their record to above .500 at 4-3.
“Actually this game, before the start, I told the team na this is a very important game for us, because of the standings,” said Austria.
San Miguel will face Phoenix Super LPG (4-3) next on Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. at the Ynares Center in Antipolo.
Meanwhile, Justin Brownlee had 40 points and nine rebounds to lead the defending champions, which absorbed their fourth consecutive loss — the first time it has happened since being under coach Tim Cone in 2016.
Arvin Tolentino and Japeth Aguilar each had 14 markers in the defeat, which dropped their card to 3-4.
Ginebra hopes to get out of its funk against the still-winless Blackwater (0-7, 0-26 since 2020) on Friday also in Antipolo.
The Scores:
San Miguel 110 – Johnson 31, Perez 23, Fajardo 13, Lassiter 13, Romeo 9, Manuel 8, Tautuaa 7, Ross 6, Brondial 0.
Ginebra 102 – Brownlee 40, Tolentino 14, Aguilar 14, Tenorio 13, Standhardinger 8, Thompson 7, Pinto 6, Caperal 0.
Quarterscores: 20-24, 48-46, 86-73, 110-102.
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