Paul Lee dealt the toughest of blows in the endgame as Magnolia took down San Miguel anew, 96-85, to tie the PBA Season 48 Commissioner’s Cup Finals at two games apiece, Friday night at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
The star gunner nailed a long trifecta with 1:51 left to play, delivering arguably the most important shot of the Hotshots’ telling 17-4 run towards a 96-83 lead heading into the final minute on the way to beating the Beermen twice in a row.
Lee finished with 14 points spiked by a pair of treys, finding his groove once more after that paltry five-point performance back in Game 2 last Sunday.
“We were so unselfish tonight,” said head coach Chito Victolero. “We kept on finding the better shots and we talked about finding the better shots.”
Tyler Bey spearheaded Magnolia with 26 points and 13 rebounds, together with three assists, six steals, and a block as his effort on defense greatly helped Magnolia in making it a series after dropping the first two games.
Mark Barroca produced 14 points, seven rebounds, and six assists. Ian Sangalang made 13 points while Jio Jalalon supplied 10 points and five rebounds as a total of five players finished in double figures in the victory.
“We moved the ball well. We had proper spacing on the floor and everybody sacrificed,” said Victolero, whose team dished out 20 assists.
The series now reduced to a virtual best-of-3, both squads will look to break the tie in Game 5 on Sunday, 6:15 p.m., still at the Big Dome.
“We just need to dig deep and grind in Game Five so we can have another two days rest. This is not over, but we like our chances now,” Victolero said.
June Mar Fajardo, on the other hand, led San Miguel with 18 points and 13 rebounds although he was not able to finish the game due to calf problems. He was subbed out at the 5:14-mark of the fourth, never to return.
CJ Perez had 17 points, five rebounds, and three assists in the loss that spoiled his coronation as Best Player of the Conference.
Don Trollano made 12 points while Jericho Cruz added 11 as the locals tried to pick things up on a night Bennie Boatwright got held to a conference-low 16 points on 5-of-16 shooting from the field, including a 1-of-9 clip from deep.
The Scores:
Magnolia 96 – Bey 26, Barroca 14, Lee 14, Sangalang 13, Jalalon 10, Abueva 9, Dionisio 6, Dela Rosa 2, Laput 2, Escoto 0, Tratter 0.
San Miguel 85 – Fajardo 18, Perez 17, Boatwright 16, Trollano 12, Cruz 11, Lassiter 9, Teng 2, Tautuaa 0, Ross 0.
Quarterscores: 27-19, 49-45, 72-73, 96-85.
