SAN Miguel Beer finally broke through the win-column by holding off gritty NorthPort 91-88 yesterday in the PBA Governors Cup at the Ynares Sports Arena.
The Beermen came up with clutch plays that mattered in the end, enabling them to thwart the Batang Pier who came charging back from a couple of 27-point deficits in the third period to make a game of it in the payoff quarter.
Brandon Brown led SMB with 24 points to go with 12 rebounds and seven assists as the Beermen notched their first win on their third match in the season-ending tourney.
The league returns to the Smart Araneta Coliseum starting this Wednesday and, for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic crippled sports in the country and the world, fans will be allowed to watch the games live.
The league got the green light from the Quezon City government to have fans back in the stands, although only vaccinated individuals, around 4,000 at the most and with proof of inoculation, will be allowed inside.
Games will be played at the Big Dome until the end of the year, including the final leg and grand finals of the PBA 3×3 tournament.
The league expects the number of people to be allowed in the venue to gradually increase once the NCR is declared under Alert Level 1 from its current Alert Level 2 status.
Commissioner Willie Marcial said games of the season-ending meet would also be played at the Mall of Asia Arena by next year.
Brown, who played six games as a replacement import for Phoenix in the 2017 edition of the same tourney, also made sure he got that elusive first win by sinking two free throws that made it a 91-85 count, 60 seconds left.
Jamie Malonzo spiked his new career-high 22 points with three straight points and Robert Bolick capped his second half heroics with two freebies of his own to make it a three-point game. But after CJ Perez missed a layup, Malonzo and Bolick failed to force overtime by missing their respective heaves from deep.
