JAY R. GOTERA
Saudi Gazette
MANILA — The San Miguel Beermen quickly fell into a 19-point hole but just as quickly recovered with plenty of firepower to spare en route to a 121-109 victory over the also-rans Phoenix Fuel Masters in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Sunday night.
SMB thus nailed its seventh win in 10 outings, just behind the pace-setting Meralco Bolts (8-2). The Beermen could clinch a top 2 finish with another win on their last elimination round game Friday against the Tropang TNT.
Phoenix closed out its first conference appearance in the league with a 3-8 win-loss card, joining GlobalPort and Blackwater at the bottom of the standings.
Tyler Wilkerson followed up his 58-point performance in SMB’s last game against NLEX last Tuesday to lead the Beermen once again with 40 markers on top of 19 rebounds.
Alex Cabagnot added 16 points while Marcio Lassiter chipped in with 14, including eight in the fourth quarter spiked by back-to-back triples that gave the Beermen their biggest lead at 115-100 with less than two minutes left in the game.
June Mar Fajardo and Gabby Espinas chimed in 12 points apiece.
The game featured the debut of Gary David as a Beerman. With SMB ahead, 115-102, with less than two minutes left to play, coach Leo Austria tapped David to play his first game for SMB after being dropped by the Meralco Bolts. David quickly connected on an undergoal stab for his first basket in his new team.
Import Kevinn Pinkney led the Fuel Masters with 38 points and 11 rebounds in just 30 minutes of action.
JC Intal posted 14 markers while Josh Urbiztondo added 10.
Rain or Shine 118,
Blackwater 107
The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters breezed past the Blackwater Elite, 118-107, for their third straight win. They ended the elimination round with a 7-4 win-loss card heading into the quarterfinal.
The Painters took advantage of Blackwater’s erratic plays late in the game to pull away. ROS played with a new import, burly center Pierre Henderson-Niles, who replaced Mo Charlo.
JR Quinahan scored a team-high 15 points to lead ROS while Jeff Chan collected 12 points, seven of them in the pivotal fourth quarter.
Niles debuted in the PBA with 12 points on top of six rebounds. However, the burly import failed to finish the game after suffering from leg cramps with 2:12 remaining.
Raymond Almazan posted a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds, Jewel Ponferada collected 11 points while Jeric Teng added 10 markers.
The Painters unleashed a 12-2 run in the fourth quarter to turn a slim three-point lead into a 13-point bulge, 111-98, with 3:45 remaining.
Games Wednesday: Mahindra Enforcers (4-6) vs. Star Hotshots (4-6) and Barangay Ginebra Kings (6-4) vs. Meralco Bolts (8-2).
