San Miguel has clinched the No. 1 seed entering the PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup quarterfinals following a 126-91 crushing of a NorthPort side whose future in the league is clouded with much uncertainty, Sunday at the Ynares Center.
The Beermen wasted no time seizing control, but it wasn’t until the second chapter that the game would become a full-blown rout, with the perennial contenders unloading 32 points to build a 57-38 lead entering the break.
The also-ran Batang Pier saw themselves silenced as SMB cruised to the top spot of the standings with an 8-3 card. That equips the team with a win-once incentive in the playoffs’ first round, which starts this Wednesday.
San Miguel will face the No. 8 seed in Meralco in a very early rematch of the previous All-Filipino wars, setting up a stage for the former to exact revenge after the Bolts stunned them in six to snag the Perpetual trophy.
It would be one of the more interesting matchups in the next round, with the Beermen taking on a team that’s just days removed from a quarterfinal finish in the Basketball Champions League Asia 2025 in Dubai.
(C) PBA Images
“This game was very important for us, because it will get us to the top four and the twice-to-beat advantage,” said head coach Leo Austria.
A total of six players finished in double figures in the romp, with CJ Perez leading the pack with 24 points on 11-of-19 shooting and five rebounds.
Jericho Cruz and Don Trollano tallied 17 points each on a combined 59-percent shooting mark. Mo Tautua’a made 14 points, six rebounds, and four assists.
It was the troika that triggered the breakaway. Tautua’a opened the second quarter scoring before the Adamson tandem came in to help, eventually widening the lead to 44-25 approaching the midway mark of the period.
June Mar Fajardo and Marcio Lassiter chipped in 10 points apiece, with the eight-time MVP adding 11 rebounds, four assists, and three steals.
(C) PBA Images
“It’s a motivation for us because it was a disappointing conference for us. I think that’s one thing na nadala sa mindset ng mga players,” said Austria as they bounced back from missing the playoffs of the last Commissioner’s Cup.
Joshua Munzon, on the other hand, had 19 points, five rebounds, and four assists to lead the Batang Pier, a franchise rumored to be up for sale.
Cade Flores made 13 points and 12 rebounds while Fran Yu and Jerrick Balanza added 11 each for NorthPort, who finished the tilt with a 2-9 record.
The Scores:
San Miguel 126 – Perez 24, Cruz 17, Trollano 17, Tautuaa 14, Fajardo 10, Lassiter 10, Teng 9, Brondial 8, Tiongson 7, Cahilig 3, Rosales 2, Calma 2, Ross
NorthPort 91 – Munzon 19, Flores 13, Balanza 11, Yu 11, Taha 9, Abueva 5, Nelle 5, Cuntapay 5, Bulanadi 5, Kwekuteye 5, Onwubere 3, Nava 0.
Quarterscores: 25-16, 57-38, 92-67, 126-91.
