It was one of those nights where TNT Katropa could do no wrong.
Everything was falling into place for the Texters against the San Miguel Beermen on Monday in Game One of their 2018 Commissioner’s Cup quarters series – they even had 40 points at the end of the first 12 minutes.
The Katropa already led by as much as 23 in the following frame. And huge thanks went to the 10 three-pointers they sunk in the first half alone that made up nearly half of their field goals, TNT had a favorable 62-48 lead at the break.
The Katropa were just two quarters away from a 1-0 series lead, and from moving to a win away from returning to the semifinals. They were just two quarters away from avenging their 94-99 loss in the elimination round.
But it’s just hard to bet against a team like the Beermen.
San Miguel showed their championship form in the second half. With the trio of Renaldo Balkman, June Mar Fajardo, and Marcio Lassiter leading the pack, the Beermen were able to get back and make it a ballgame again.
The Beermen held true to the “no lead is safe” adage, as the defending champions made an overwhelming 19 straight points to flip a three-point deficit to a commanding 119-106 lead with just 1:15 left in the final quarter.
San Miguel emerged victorious, 121-110.
“I mean, it’s [the] playoffs, so we just can’t afford that,” said Lassiter, who had 26 points, six rebounds, four assists, and two steals in the win. “Coming from a team like us, we just gotta be prepared and you know.
“They made ten threes in the first half, so that’s a lot of credit to them. They came out and made threes. We knew in the second half, some of those shots might not go in, so we just gotta keep believing in our defense,” the 31-year-old sniper added.
“And that’s what helped us in the second half.”
But as much as they are delighted with the fightback they displayed, Lassiter made it clear that they can’t afford to do the same again in Game Two, which will be this Wednesday, July 11, 7:00 PM still at the Big Dome.
“We know that playing a great team like Talk ‘N Text, we can’t afford to do that again.
“Come Wednesday, we really have to come and play a full 48-minutes because it’s gonna be another grind-out game for them and for us,” the seven-year veteran stressed.
