San Miguel displayed a near-perfect outing and drubbed Magnolia, 98-86, to send the 2019 PBA Philippine Cup Finals to an all-important Game Seven, Sunday night at SMART Araneta Coliseum.
“Nagpapasalamat kami sa Panginoon nai-tabla namin serye,” said Beermen head coach Leo Austria. “You can see from the players that they did not want to lose. We now have a good chance to grab it (championship) again.”
Reigning five-time Most Valuable Player June Mar Fajardo powered the Beermen with 23 points and 18 rebounds, in the victory that kept alive their quest of securing their unprecedented fifth-straight All-Filipino championship.
Marcio Lassiter has regained his touch after a rough start to the series. After putting up 20 points and eight rebounds in Game Five last Friday, he had 20 again this time, along with seven boards, three dimes, and two steals.
Chris Ross supplied 17 points, six feeds, and five caroms. He was the catalyst for SMB’s 37-16 lead in the second frame, as he went 5-for-5 from downtown in the first half alone. He finished with a 66-percent shooting clip.
Christian Standhardinger chipped in 16 markers in the win.
Jio Jalalon had 17 points and eight assists to lead Magnolia, who managed to fight back in the match. They entered the fourth quarter down by just six, 62-68, only to let San Miguel pull away en route to the win.
Ian Sangalang chimed in 14 points and five rebounds, while fellow big man Rafi Reavis provided 13 points on 6-of-6 shooting and five caroms as well. Rodney Brondial and Paul Lee had 12 and 10 points, respectively.
Mark Barroca – the hero for the Hotshots back in Game Five as he made the game-winning baseline jumper to cap off his impressive 22-point performance – was limited to a lowly six points on a dismal 3-of-10 shooting.
Game Seven is on Wednesday, May 15, still at the Big Dome.
The Scores
San Miguel 98 – Fajardo 23, Lassiter 20, Ross 17, Standhardinger 16, Romeo 9, Santos 8, Cabagnot 3, Rosser 0, Pessumal 0.
Magnolia 86 – Jalalon 17, Reavis 16, Sangalang 14, Brondial 12, Lee 10, Barroca 6, Dela Rosa 5, Herndon 5, Melton 4, Simon 0, Pascual 0.
Quarterscores: 25-12, 50-36, 68-62, 98-86.
