Chris Ross, one of the premier defenders in the game today, showed another facet to his game rarely seen, leading the San Miguel Beermen to a dominant Game 4 win over the TNT Katropa, 97-86, Tuesday evening at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
With the victory, the Beermen avoided a deep 1-3 deficit and have leveled the best-of-seven series at two games apiece.
“I am so happy na na-tie namin yung series or we’re in trouble. It’s hard ngayon, lalo na matatalino yung mga team ngayon,” said SMB coach Leo Austria in the win.
Guard Chris Ross was stellar in tonight’s SMB victory, leading the Beermen with a career-high 31 points on 9-of-19 shooting from the floor, with 5-of-11 coming from outside. He also had five rebounds and five assists.
“I have to commend my players especially Chris Ross who played with a sense of urgency. I have to appreciate that kind of effort.
“Nagulat ako na pumapasok yung mga tira niya on the three-point area. I’d rather have Alex [Cabagnot] or Marcio [Lassiter] shoot, but it turned out that he was the best three-point shooter we had this game. Do-it-all siya tonight and I have to appreciate that guy dahil focused siya today,” shared Austria about Ross.
June Mar Fajardo backed up Ross with 15 markers on 7-of-11 shooting and 15 boards, while Lassiter also had a double-double of 12 points and 10 assists. Cabagnot played his series-low 32 minutes to chip in 12 markers.
The Beermen coughed up a 22-point lead from the third canto that allowed TNT to come back and close within nine, 80-71, after a vicious 10-2 spree led by Jayson Castro’s six markers with 7:56 left in the match.
SMB responded, however, as baskets by RR Garcia, Arwind Santos, and Fajardo widened the gap from single digits to a wide 16 points, 93-77, in the 3:12 mark of the final quarter.
The Katropa tried to stage one last run to steal the victory, closing in by nine once more, 93-84, after seven straight points by Roger Pogoy. But a Santos jumper and a Fajardo basket stab closed the door for TNT.
“This series is a chess match but hindi kami na-trap this time. And we have to play our game. Yun yung nangyari ngayon that we dictated the tempo of the game,” added Austria.
Four players paced the Katropa in the defeat. Larry Fonacier led them with 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting. Castro added 13 markers on a horrid 5-of-17 from the floor, while Mo Tautuaa and Kelly Williams supplied 12 and 10 points, respectively.
The Beermen shot 34 percent tonight, hitting 44 of 37 tries from the floor, with most of their shots coming from the 22assists they dished. They also capitalized on TNT’s 17 turnovers, converting it to 17 points. However, San Miguel lost the battle on rebounds, 50-46, and fell short on making second chance points, 17-16.
Game 5 of the Beermen-Katropa series will be this Thursday, February 16, 7:00 PM, at the Araneta Coliseum.
The Scores:
San Miguel 97 – Ross 31, Fajardo 15, Lassiter 12, Cabagnot 12, Espinas 10, Garcia 8, Santos 7, Tubid 2, Y. De Ocampo 0, Reyes 0, Heruela 0.
TNT 86 – Fonacier 15, Castro 13, Tautuaa 12, Williams 10, Pogoy 9, Rosario 5, Ganuelas-Rosser 4, R. De Ocampo 4, Rosales 4, Carey 4, Reyes 4, Seigle 2, Sumalinog 0.
Quarterscores: 18-19, 44-32, 76-58, 97-86.
