ANTIPOLO – San Miguel needed to call Lady Luck for some help in overcoming a vengeful Converge, 116-113, and breathe life into its flat-lining hopes in the PBA Season 49 Commissioner’s Cup, Friday night at the Ynares Center.
The Beermen witnessed what was once a 19-point lead become just one, 114-113, with 1:40 left in the game but the breaks of the game went in their favor, ultimately allowing the crew to survive — and shake up the standings.
Reigning champions of this conference, SMB regained solo eighth with a 5-6 card, getting ahead of 4-6 teams Magnolia and NLEX after dragging the FiberXers down to fifth at 8-4 from being the no. 2 seed behind NorthPort.
The Batang Pier, as a result, have taken pole position at 8-3, with Hong Kong Eastern, Meralco, and TNT all sharing the second spot as they tote 7-3 slates.
“This is the first time that we had a good start since our game against Magnolia. We dictated the tempo of the game but in the end as I’ve said, it’s not only the start but it’s the finish. Fortunately, we’re able to win,” said coach Leo Austria.
(C) PBA Images
Malik Pope finally came alive after lackluster showings in his previous games as he finished with 22 points and 14 rebounds, together with three blocks.
Juami Tiongson fired 22 points as well in his best performance since arriving to the traditional contenders, going 6-of-10 from beyond the first arc.
June Mar Fajardo finished with 19 points and 14 rebounds. Don Trollano made 17 points while CJ Perez flirted with a triple-double with 11 points, seven rebounds, and nine assists as all starters recorded double figures in scoring.
Marcio Lassiter came off the bench and chipped in 10 points for a team that’s still in the process of figuring things out with new faces around.
Yet there was a semblance of the mighty San Miguel with the way it started, racing to a 29-16 start before pulling away toward leading by 19 points twice during the third quarter, which left the Converge faithful silenced.
The Beermen even appeared to be in cruise control when Pope made a bucket and gave them a 108-91 lead with less than eight minutes left in the fourth.
But they lost Fajardo and Jericho Cruz one after the other for five minutes each for incurring flagrant fouls and it proved to be an opening that the FiberXers capitalized on, unleashing a 22-6 rally to get within a point.
They could not convert, however, and things would go from bad to worse for the youth-laden unit. Alec Stockton got assessed with a technical foul, before Jordan Heading giot whistled for a shooting foul on Perez from the four.
Both those instances sent Fajardo and Perez to the line, and the two would go on to extend San Miguel’s lead — and settle the eventual scoreline.
“Our players are so emotional to the point na nakakakuha kami ng mga technical fouls and we should learn from those. Maturity is something we have to consider to improve our team,” said Austria.
The Beermen are now looking forward to passing another tough test that is TNT on Sunday, January 26, 7:30 p.m. at the Ynares Center, still, in their final game of the elimination round, and then hope for the best from there.
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Cheick Diallo, meanwhile, had 28 points and 11 rebounds to lead a Converge side that fell just short of wrapping up its eliminations with a W.
Still, they’re assured of a trip to the quarterfinals although it depends on the results of the other teams’ remaining matches to determine its twice-to-beat hopes — something that the young club has yet to achieve.
Heading produced 25 points, including a perfect 2-for-2 clip from four, together with seven rebounds, five assists, and a pair of steals.
Stockton made 19 points while Justine Baltazar tallied a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds for the FiberXers, who competed without Justin Arana as their main man got sidelined due to a hyper-extended left knee.
The Scores:
San Miguel 116 – Tiongson 22, Pope 22, Fajardo 19, Trollano 17, Perez 11, Lassiter 10, Tautuaa 6, Cruz 6, Cahilig 3, Ross 0..
Converge 113 – Diallo 28, Heading 25, Stockton 19, Baltazar 13, Racal 8, Andrade 6, Winston 5, Delos Santos 4, Santos 3, Javillonar 2, Ambohot 0, Cabagno 0.
Quarterscores: 29-16, 65-48, 99-81, 116-113.
