The San Miguel Beermen, winners of six straight, took on the Blackwater Bossing in the main game of PBA Philippine Cup action on Saturday at Ynares Center in Antipolo. The Beermen made it seven straight victories with a 116-92 dismantling of Blackwater in yet another command performance. With the victory, San Miguel improved to 7-2, while the Bossing dropped to 1-9.
What Happened?
San Miguel raced ahead to a 24-16 first-quarter lead and extended it to 51-36 at halftime with Don Trollano leading the way. Blackwater put up a semblance of a fight in the third, winning it 35-30 to trim the Beermen’s lead down to 81-71 entering the fourth quarter. The defending champs, though, weren’t going to let this one slip away, restoring order early in the fourth and outscoring Blackwater 35-21 en route to the blowout.
Who Stood Out?
Don Trollano was the lone double-digit scorer in the first half, and he continued his hot shooting well into the second on his way to a game-high 22 markers. CJay Perez, meanwhile, went bonkers in the third, making three triples as he joined the scoring parade. Even Rodney Brondial chipped in with a solid 15-point, 10-rebound double-double.
Despite the blowout, there were some bright spots for Blackwater, notably rookie James Una, veteran Bradwyn Guinto, and Jed Mendoza. Una fired a career-high 19 points on top of 12 boards for arguably his best game as a pro, while Guinto added 16 markers and 5 boards. Jed Mendoza, meanwhile, had a conference-best 15 points on top of 4 rebounds, and 4 assists.
3 Keys to the Game
- Offensive rebounding. Sure, San Miguel shot well enough to win at 46.5% overall. But the Beermen also got a whopping 24 offensive rebounds to Blackwater’s 12. That resulted in a 29-12 advantage in second-chance points. Epitomizing SMB’s dominance on this front was June Mar Fajardo, who grabbed 6 offensive boards. Brondial and Mo Tautaa added a combined 7 more.
- Bench play. Blackwater’s starters actually played their San Miguel counterparts to a draw, with both sides scoring 48. But the Beermen had a 68-44 advantage in points off the bench as San Miguel’s second unit again got the job done. Trollano, of course, led the way with his 22 markers, followed by 12 from Jericho Cruz.
- Interior scoring. Thanks to their dominance on the offensive glass, the Beermen got plenty of looks inside, resulting in a 64-52 advantage in points in the paint. Inside incursions by Trollano, CJay Perez, and the other Beermen helped in this regard, too.
Next Up for the PBA
The PBA Philippine Cup continues on Sunday at the Ynares Center in Antipolo with two teams jockeying for better seedings as the featured game, and another squad looking to just stay alive for a possible playoff spot going up against a team already eliminated from contention. The Titan Ultra Giant Risers open up hostilities when they take on the Phoenix Fuel Masters, who bowed out of the playoff race after losing to the Meralco Bolts on Friday. The nightcap will see the Meralco Bolts going up against the Converge FiberXers in a showdown of playoff-bound teams.
Titan Ultra vs. Phoenix (5:15 p.m.)
Converge vs. Meralco (7:30 p.m.)
