FANCIED TNT seemingly had the game and the title in the bag in the final 3:09 but San Miguel Beer refused to lie down and die yesterday.
Showing the biggest of hearts, the Beermen carved out a heart-stopping 22-20 decision over the Tropang Giga to rule Leg 4 of the PBA 3×3 Season 2 First Conference at Robinsons Malabon.
Veteran big man Ken Bono typified SMB’s resolve, booming in the buzzer-beating equalizer from deep and delivering the winning inside bucket in OT.
Bono wound up with eight points, to go with five rebounds and two shot blocks for the Beermen, while Wendell Comboy chipped in six markers.
Jeff Manday and Raffy Verano also had five and three points, respectively for SMB.
The Boycie Zamar-mentored quartet took home P100,000 in winning the franchise’s initial leg of the season.
TNT’s Almond Vosotros, Lervin Flores, Gryan Mendoza and Ray Mark Acuno fell short in their bid to become the first two-leg champion of the fledging 3×3 league and settled for runner-up honors worth P50,000.
“Tulong-tulong lang talaga kami ng mga teammates ko,” Bono said. “Iyong effort nandoon at never kami nag-give up.”
A two-pointer by Almond Vosotros shoved the Tropang Giga to a point away from the Promised Land.
But the Beermen battled back, with Comboy and Manday knocking down back-to-back two-pointers before Bono scored inside and followed by deuce that forged the extra period.
Manday foiled Vosotros’ attempts in OT, allowing Comboy to give them a 21-20 edge and Bono to seal the deal.
