The San Miguel Beermen will have a twice-to-beat advantage in the PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup quarterfinals.
The Leo Austria-coached squad clinched the No. 1 seed after it thrashed the NorthPort Batang Pier, 126-91, during their elimination round closer on Sunday, June 15, at the Ynares Center in Antipolo, Rizal.
CJ Perez top-scored anew for the Beermen, putting up 24 points on top of five rebounds and a steal. Don Trollano and Jericho Cruz each scored 17, Mo Tautuaa did damage with 14 markers, while June Mar Fajardo and Marcio Lassiter both had 10 points in the win.
“This game is very important for us,” Austria emphasized after the game.
“If we lose and Ginebra wins, we’ll be at No. 5, and [our players] knew that situation.”
San Miguel improved to 8-3 in the team standings after this win, and they will be facing their Season 498 All-Filipino finals tormentors, the eighth-seed Meralco Bolts come playoff time.
However, Perez downplayed their seeding in the quarterfinals, especially since they will be up against a Bolts squad which is hungry to retain their title.
“It doesn’t matter, kasi every team nag-improve talaga,” he said.
On the other hand, NorthPort closed its conference campaign with just two wins in 11 games.
This comes after their semifinals appearance in the Commissioner’s Cup, one wherein they were ousted by Barangay Ginebra San Miguel in five games.
The Beermen zoomed to an early 24-11 cushion in the game all thanks to baskets from Perez, Lassiter, Trollano, and Andreas Cahilig, and their advantage only ballooned from that point on.
They not only increased their scoring output in the following quarters, but they also distanced themselves by as much as 37, 113-76, midway through the fourth canto.
For NorthPort’s part, Joshua Munzon led his squad in scoring with 19 points, which was complemented by five rebounds and four assists. Cade Flores had a 13-point, 12-rebound game, while former Letran Knights Fran Yu and Jerrick Balanza contributed 11 in their loss. (ABS-CBN News)
SAN MIGUEL 126 — Perez 24, Cruz 17, Trollano 17, Tautuaa 14, Fajardo 10, Lassiter 10, Brondial 8, Tiongson 7, Teng 4, Cahilig 3, Rosales 2, Calma 2, Ross.
NORTHPORT 91 — Munzon 19, Flores 13, Balanza 11, Yu 11, Taha 9, Abueva 5, Nelle 5, Cuntapay 5, Bulanadi 5, Kwekuteye 5, Onwubere 3, Nava 0.
Quarterscores: 25-16, 57-38, 92-67, 126-91.