The PBA Commissioner’s Cup continued on Sunday, December 15, at the Ynares Center with another double-header that featured two of the league’s bigger draws. However, unlike before, these two teams had contrasting results. Here is a recap of the games:
San Miguel Takes Down Blackwater Behind Monster June Mar Fajardo 20-20
Coach Leo Austria’s return is off to a slam-bang start as the San Miguel Beermen took down the Blackwater Bossing, 115-102, for their second straight win.
The Bossing, fresh from their first win, actually started strong, building a 26-18 first-quarter advantage behind the hot shooting of import George King. But the Beermen began chipping away at that lead in the second and finished the first half ahead, 55-48. They never looked back as they won their third game in five tries.
June Mar Fajardo led the way for San Miguel with a monster double-double of 27 points and 22 rebounds to go along with his 7 assists. Import Torren Jones had 29 points and 14 rebounds, while CJay Perez and Jericho Cruz added 15 and 14 markers, respectively.
Blackwater, who dropped to 1-4, got 40 points from George King and 17 markers from Sedrick Barefield.
The Beermen next face Hong Kong Eastern on December 22 at the PhilSports Arena. The Bossing clash with the TNT Tropang Giga on December 19 at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
The Scores:
- San Miguel (115) – Jones 29, Fajardo 27, Perez 15, Cruz 14, Trollano 11, Cahilig 8, Lassiter 5, Ross 4, Rosales 2
- Blackwater (102) – King 40, Barefield 17, David 10, Ilagan 9, Chua 6, Ponferada 6, Suerte 5, Kwekuteye 5, Guinto 4
Hong Kong Eastern Humbles Misfiring Ginebra
Hong Kong Eastern proved they are legitimate title contenders in this PBA Commissioner’s Cup with a rousing 93-90 triumph over perennial powerhouse Barangay Ginebra San Miguel.
Eastern was in control for much of the way, ending the first half with a 54-44 advantage. The Hong Kong-based squad continued its fine play in the third, waxing hot to build as much as a 13-point lead, 70-57, as Ginebra kept firing blanks from downtown.
The crowd darlings did launch a comeback bid in the fourth but fell short.
Hayden Blankley led Eastern with 25 points on 5-for-9 from trey territory. Import Chris McLaughlin added 20 points, 21 boards, and 6 dimes. Japeth Aguilar paced Ginebra with 26 points and 8 boards, while Justin Brownlee added 18 points and 12 boards.
Ginebra, who dropped to 2-1, returns to action on December 18 when they take on the Terrafirma Dyip at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium. The 4-1 Eastern next take on the Northport Batang Pier on December 20 at the PhilSports Arena.
The Scores:
- Eastern (93) – Blankley 25, McLaughlin 20, Cao 14, Yang 11, Lam 8, Chan 6, Guinchard 5, Leung 3, Xu 1
- Barangay Ginebra (90)– J. Aguilar 26, Brownlee 18, Holt 14, Abarrientos 12, Rosario 12, Thompson 8, Cu 0, Adamos 0, Ahanmisi 0
PBA Commissioner’s Cup Continues
The PBA Commissioner’s Cup’s next double-header is on Tuesday, December 17, at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium. The curtain-raiser will see the Converge FiberXers taking on the NLEX Road Warriors, while the nightcap will be the Phoenix Fuel Masters facing off with the Northport Batang Pier.
