June Mar Fajardo did all he could to tow the San Miguel Beermen to victory on Sunday in Game 1 of their PBA Philippine Cup semis showdown with Barangay Ginebra San Miguel. But his mighty 27-point, 23-rebound effort went for naught as the crowd darlings pulled out a 99-90 triumph to take a 1-0 lead against the defending champs.
If the nine-time MVP is the least bit bothered by the loss, he certainly isn’t showing it. Or it’s more than likely Fajardo isn’t really worried at all.
“Bounce back na lang kami. Kailangan namin mag-regroup,” he told the PBA after Game 1 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. “Hindi naman matatapos agad ito. Malayo pa ito.”
If anything, that’s a strong message to Ginebra. It might even be a guarantee that this series could likely go to a Game 7—just like the last time these two teams met in the semis.
Beermen Need to Regroup, Says Fajardo
Of course, before Fajardo and the rest of the Beermen can think ahead to a long series, they need to get back to the drawing board, according to The Kraken himself.
Fajardo is obviously right, and he can set an example by shooting better from the charity stripe after he shot just 5-for-12 in Game 1. His teammates, though, need plenty of regrouping, starting with Don Trollano and Jericho Cruz, whose 9 total points was 18 fewer than their combined 27.2 average this conference. Chris Ross activating Playoff Ross should help, too, after the veteran guard went 0-for-5 from deep in Game 1.
One thing that bears mentioning in all this: Despite San Miguel’s struggles in Game 1, it was still just one point behind Ginebra with 5:38 remaining in the fourth quarter. With a strong bounce back likely in the offing, it won’t be surprising if the Beermen even things up after Game 2.
San Miguel and Ginebra go at it again on Wednesday, also at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. Game 2 is set at 5:15 p.m.
