The San Miguel Beermen are back in the PBA Philippine Cup Finals, and they have CJay Perez to thank.
Perez staked San Miguel to an early double-digit lead with a performance for the ages, firing the most points ever by a local in 36 years in a historic first quarter. In all, The Predator put up 30 of San Miguel’s 39 points in the first 12 minutes of play, and he did so without missing any of his 12 attempts. That scorch-earth start propelled the Beermen to a 101-88 series-clinching victory in Game 6.
“Nung na-shoot ko ’yung una saka pangalawa. ’Yung pangatlo, pang-apat, tinira ko na lang,” Perez said of his flaming-hot first quarter. “Doon pumasok ’yung kumpiyansa. Nakita ko rin sa bench na tiwalang-tiwala sila. Pag tira ko pa lang, nakikita ko mukha nila, hindi sila nakasimangot.”
CJay Perez and His Historic Quarter
With his 30 first-quarter points, CJay Perez tied Paul Alvarez for the second-most points scored by a local. Alvarez achieved his feat on April 26, 1990, against Formula Shell—and in a semifinals game, too, just as Perez did on Friday. The all-time record is 37, set by Allan Caidic a year later in 1991.
Overall, meaning including imports, Perez’s and Alvarez’s 30 points are the third-most points scored in a quarter. They trail only Caidic and former Ginebra import Michael Hackett, who dropped 33 points in one quarter on November 21, 1985, en route to scoring 103 points against Great Taste.
Perez’s 12-for-12 clip in the first quarter was historic as well. By making 12 straight shots, the Gilas mainstay eclipsed Cyrus Baguio’s record for most made field goals in a quarter without a miss. Baguio made all nine of his shots in the first quarter of a Philippine Cup game between his Alaska Aces and the Coca-Cola Tigers on May 19, 2010.
That 12-for-12 mark also tied Perez with Ali Peek for the most consecutive field goals made without a miss. Peek set his record on March 10, 2006, in a game, ironically, between Coca-Cola and Alaska, also in the Philippine Cup.
In all, that’s three records in one quarter for CJay Perez. Now, he and his Beermen are headed to the PBA Philippine Cup Finals.
