SAN Miguel Beer coach Leo Austria told his charges their honeymoon phase after their Philippine Cup win should be over by now. The Beermen responded in a big way last night.
Bolstered by a decisive fourth quarter turnaround, SMB waylaid gritty Rain or Shine 113-105 for their first win in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig.
Import Diamond Stone shone for the Beermen with a game-high 42 points he laced with 13 rebounds and three assists, while June Mar Fajardo did his share with 21 markers, eight boards, and four dimes.
CJ Perez also had 13 points, six caroms, and three feeds for SMB, which redeemed itself from a stunning 106-109 loss to Blackwater last Wednesday and improved to 1-1.
The Elasto Painters, coming off a 106-94 triumph over Terrafirma eight days ago, tumbled to 2-2 in a three-way tie with NorthPort and the Bossing.
“Our first game was a lackluster game for us. It was very evident naman that we’re just playing the game. Maybe because they were dwelling a lot on our championship. I told them naman before the start that the championship is already a thing of the past,” Austria said. “We have to fight back, we have to have another start come gametime. It was very evident — they were not playing that well and not on our level.”
“We were able to get a lead of 15 points pero napabayaan namin and that’s something we want to solve. Every time we’re leading, nagkakaroon ng relaxation sa team. This time, they were focused because they knew the importance of this game,” he added.
The Beermen led by as much as 55-43 on a Stone triple at the 4:05 mark of the second quarter before settling for a 61-49 spread at the half.
Rain or Shine grabbed a 74-68 buffer on a Rey Nambatac floater with 7:13 remaining in the third but the Beermen knotted it at 85-all heading into the final stanza.
An 11-0 binge capped by Fajardo jumper turned a 94-95 game into a 105-95 SMB edge in the last 3:59.
Painter Beau Belga was called for flagrant foul penalty two with 4:37 to go, while technical fouls were also slapped on Stone for trash-talking Belga, as well as Chris Ross and Rain or Shine strategist Yeng Guiao for a verbal exchange.
Steve Taylor paced the Painters with 20 points, 18 rebounds, and nine assists, while Rey Nambatac and Leonard Santillan added 19 and 15 markers, respectively.
Gian Mamuyac, Anton Asistio, Andrei Caracut, and Jewel Ponferada also got 13, 11, 11, and 10 points, respectively, for Rain or Shine.
