San Miguel evens series

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San Miguel evens series

GAME TOMORROW
(Mall of Asia Arena)
5:45 p.m. — SMB vs. TNT

SAN Miguel Beer made sure defending champion TNT won’t have a crack at another game-winner last night.

Bolstered by a big fourth quarter breakaway, the Beermen got back at the Tropang Giga, scoring a 109-100 victory in Game 2 of their best-of-7 finals showdown for the PBA Philippine Cup crown at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

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CJ Perez led five other teammates in double-digits with 23 points and five rebounds for SMB, while Vic Manuel chipped in 20 markers and four boards.

Marcio Lassiter knocked down three three-pointers and finished with 19 points and six rebounds, while June Mar Fajardo, Jericho Cruz, and Mo Tautuaa had 13, 12, and 11 respectively for the Beermen.

The win served as a sweet payback for SMB after it dropped a heartrending 84-86 loss to TNT on a Jayson Castro buzzer-beating jumper in the series opener last Sunday and knotted the title battle at 1-1.

Beermen coach Leo Austria was pleased with how his wards took to heart the lessons they learned in the first game.

“Una sa lahat gusto kong magpasalamat sa Panginoong Diyos kasi nanalo kami ngayon kasi kapag 0-2, mahirap ng manalo. Ang sinasabi ko sa kanila lagi kaming lamang pero pagdating ng third quarter nagrerelax kami so nawawala iyong killer instinct,” Austria said.

“Mabuti na lang ngayon iyong pride nila as players ay nasundot ng kaunti kasi from start to finish talagang very close and hindi sila bumitaw unlike kapag lamang kami may tendency na mag-relax,” he added.

Tied at 51-all at the half, SMB took an 82-79 cushion heading into the final stanza.

The Beermen uncorked a 9-0 blitz capped by a Manuel basket that pegged a 91-79 count at the 8:59 mark of the fourth.

SMB stretched the difference to as much as 95-80 on a Lassiter bucket with still 7:48 remaining.

The Tropang Giga last threatened at 92-100 on a Kob Montalbo layup but that proved to be too little, too late.

Roger Pogoy paced TNT with 28 points, four caroms, and two feeds but went scoreless in the fourth, while Castro added 15 and three.

Montalbo, Troy Rosario, and Kelly Williams also got 14, 11, and 10 markers, respectively for the Tropang Giga, who played their first of two games without coach Chot Reyes who is in Lebanon to call the shots for Gilas Pilipinas.

Hobbled by a sprained left ankle he suffered in the second canto, TNT gunner Mikey Williams was held to just seven points — all in the first half.

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