By Adrian Stewart Co
Jericho Cruz had his best game as a member of the San Miguel Beermen (SMB) as they defeated Converge FiberXers, 111-92, in the 2022 PBA Philippine Cup on Sunday night at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City.
The Iloilo City-native Cruz waxed hot with 22 points, with 18 coming in the opening half, to go with six assists and three rebounds as the Beermen tied Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings on top of the standings with a 4-1 slate.
Jaymar Perez had triple-double 15 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists, Moala Tautuaa chipped in double-double 19 points and 10 rebounds, June Mar Fajardo had 18 points and 16 boards, while Marcio Lassiter and Michael Canete had 12 and 10, respectively.
From a seesaw battle early in the opening quarter, Cruz ignited the Beermen offense with eight early points coupled with inside conversions from Perez and Tautuaa to build a 28-16 advantage.
Cruz continued his offensive outburst in the second quarter with inside and outside conversions for a 62-39 halftime lead before widening it to its largest at 31 points in the second half.
Allyn Bulanadi tallied career-high 22 points, including five triples, Michael Digregorio and rookie Tyrus Hill added 21 and 15 points, respectively, while Maverick Ahanmisi and David Murrell had 10 points each as the FiberXers dropped to 2-4.
In the first game, Mikey Williams and Roger Pogoy took turns on the offensive end in the second half as the TNT Tropang Giga hacked out an 87-72 win over Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters.
Down 44-49 in the third quarter, Williams unloaded consecutive triples to give TNT a 50-49 lead. Pogoy then knocked down seven straight points followed by back-to-back hits from Rodolfo Alejandro as the Tropang Giga surged to a 63-58 lead.
The Tropang Giga continued its rampage in the fourth quarter as nine consecutive points by Williams followed by hits from Pogoy and Glenn Khobuntin gave them the largest lead at 87-68.
Williams finished the game with 27 points, including five three-point conversions, while Pogoy added 20 markers as the Tropang Giga surged to its third straight victory for a 5-2 win-loss slate. The Fuel Masters dropped to 2-4.
BOX SCORE:
SAN MIGUEL 111 – Cruz 22, Tautuaa 19, Fajardo 18, Perez 15, Lassiter 12, Canete 10, Zamar 9, Enciso 4, Brondial 2, Pessumal 0, Herndon 0, Faundo 0.
CONVERGE 92 – Bulanadi 22, Digregorio 21, Hill 15, Ahanmisi 10, Murrell 10, Arana 4, Racal 4, Adamos 2, Stockton 2, Tolomia 2, Ilagan 0, Tratter 0, Browne 0, Lojera 0.
Quarterscores: 28-16, 62-39, 86-66, 111-92./ASC, WDJ