San Miguel scored a crucial victory in its bid for a twice-to-beat advantage in the 2025 PBA Philippine Cup, fending off Rain or Shine, 120-111, in a heated Saturday night matchup at the Cagayan de Oro City Convention Center.
The win was vital for the Beermen, who improved their record to 7-2 with two games remaining in the elimination round.
San Miguel will face Converge on Wednesday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium, followed by NorthPort on Sunday at the Ynares Center in Antipolo. Winning either game would secure the coveted twice-to-beat incentive in the quarterfinals.
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Meanwhile, the Elasto Painters saw their hopes for a playoff bonus slip away, falling to a 6-4 record. Rain or Shine has one game left in the preliminaries, set against Ginebra on Sunday.
Despite leading by as much as 25 points in the second quarter and by 13 early in the final frame, San Miguel saw its advantage shrink due to the relentless grit of Rain or Shine.
Adrian Nocum ignited a furious comeback for the Elasto Painters, trimming the deficit to just 103-102 with 5:06 remaining.
But the Adamson duo of Don Trollano and Rodney Brondial stepped up to halt the bleeding, scoring seven straight points to give the Beermen some breathing room.
Although Andrei Caracut attempted one last push for Rain or Shine, CJ Perez delivered a cold-blooded four-point shot to slam the door shut.
Perez spearheaded the win with a dominant stat line: 33 points, eight rebounds, seven assists, and three steals.
Trollano chipped in 24 points, while June Mar Fajardo added 20 points on an efficient 8-of-12 shooting along with nine rebounds.
Marcio Lassiter also made key contributions off the bench, tallying 16 points, including two three-pointers and a four-pointer.
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Tensions flared late in the game when Chris Ross and Jhonard Clarito were assessed technical fouls for a second motion incident following a loose ball. Nocum also received a technical with 7.5 seconds remaining after slapping the ball away from Ross during a deadball situation.
Caracut and Nocum led the charge for Rain or Shine with 24 and 22 points, respectively, with Caracut also dishing out seven assists.
Clarito added 17 points, while Keith Datu and Santi Santillan contributed 12 and 10 points, respectively, combining for 11 rebounds in the paint.
The Scores:
San Miguel 120 – Perez 33, Trollano 24, Fajardo 20, Lassiter 16, Tiongson 8, Cruz 6, Ross 4, Brondial 4, Cahilig 3, Tautuaa 2.
Rain or Shine 111 – Caracut 24, Nocum 22, Clarito 17, Datu 12, Santillan 10, Mamuyac 9, Tiongson 7, Porter 5, Asistio 5, Norwood 0.
Quarterscores: 30-25, 60-43, 93-78, 120-111.
