SAN Miguel Beer is back in the finals and will be the roadblock TNT has to go through in a bid to complete a Grand Slam.
The Beermen endured a classic knockout duel with the Barangay Ginebra Kings, pulling off a 100-93 win Wednesday to gain the right to battle the Tropang 5G in a gigantic title showdown.
A Big Dome crowd of over 12,000 witnessed June Mar Fajardo and his teammates dispatch the Gin Kings and stay on redemption path after sorry downfalls in the last three conferences.
Heroes abound for the Beermen in this eventful night as they bucked an 11-point deficit late in the third and beat out the Kings in a shootout in the fourth on the way to a championship clash with the Tropang 5G.
While coach Chot Reyes' troops seek the final jewel in a possible Grand Slam, coach Leo Austria's chargers will set out to reclaim the league's most coveted crown they last won in 2022.
Sponsored content:
June Mar Fajardo delivered a 21-point, 19-rebound double-double while Chris Ross put up a statement performance with 19 points, seven assists, four steals and three rebounds after riding the bench the whole time in Game Six.
CJ Perez and Moala Tautuaa contributed 15 and 14 points, respectively, while Adamson boys Jericho Cruz, Don Trollano and Rodney Brondial gave their college coach and their team a tremendous lift in fueling SMB's rally from 62-73 down in the third.
Then Ross and Fajardo took over in the stretch, exerting tremendous effort on defense and making big buckets on the other end to complete the task for San Miguel, foiling what could have been a TNT-Ginebra Last Dance III in Season 49.
Fajardo stood as a solid wall in the middle, getting blocks and clearing the board while Ross was a pesky defender up front, getting successive steals that sparked a decisive SMB tear towards the end.
"It's very clear they never gave up especially in the fourth. They all realized they need to step up, and they did step up," said Austria.
Sponsored content:
They dished out SMB playoff basketball and crushed the hopes of the Gin Kings whose tough stand was led by Jamie Malonzo with 22 points, Scottie Thompson with 16, Troy Rosario and RJ Abarrientos with 15 apiece and Stephen Holt and Japeth Aguilar with 12 each.
The Beermen took the half at 45-44 on a 12-2 closing run, an answer to the Kings' attempt for an early breakaway, leading by nine at 42-33.
JMF and his teammates dominated the boards and gained a 13-2 advantage on second-chance points, but the Gin Kings kept the opening half a tight game with their 7-of-12 treys as against SMB's 3-of-18. (SB)
The Scores :
SAN MIGUEL100 - Fajardo 21, Ross 19, Perez 15, Tautuaa 14, Trollano 10, Tiongson 6, Brondial 6, Lassiter 5, Cruz 4.
GINEBRA 93 - Malonzo 22, Thompson 16, Abarrientos 16, Rosario 15, Holt 12, J.Aguilar 12, David 0, Ahanmisi 0, Tenorio 0.
QUARTERS: 17-23, 45-44, 66-73, 100-93
