MANILA – San Miguel Beermen rode on a huge second half assault to score a 115-99 beating of TNT Tropang Giga in the 2022 PBA Philippine Cup last night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
From a 57-all count midway in the third period, the Beermen got inside conversions from June Mar Fajardo and consecutive baskets from Ilonggo Jericho Cruz to build an 83-71 lead.
Cruz and Fajardo continued their attack at the onset of the fourth quarter, while Simon Enciso and Marcio Lassiter also contributed triples. The Beermen reached its largest lead at 107-88 on an inside basket by Rodney Brondial.
Cruz finished the game with career-high 30 points, with 23 coming in the second half, while Fajardo chipped in double-double 30 points and 16 rebounds as the Beermen surged to solo first place with 7-1 win-loss slate.
Enciso drilled four triples to end up with 16 markers, Brondial had double-double 12 points and 18 rebounds, while Perez ended with 12 markers and 10 assists for the streaking SMB.
Kelly Williams ended with double-double 20 points and 10 rebounds, Jayson Castro added 17 markers, while Bacolodnon Kib Montalbo and John Paul Erram had 12 each as the defending champions Tropang Giga dropped to 7-3.
In the first game, Justin Arana came alive in the fourth quarter as Converge FiberXers (3-5) snapped its two-game losing skid with a 112-108 victory over NLEX Road Warriors (4-4).
Clinging to a 77-76 lead early in the fourth, Arana anchored FiberXers’ fiery fourth quarter start with inside conversions along with David Murrell and Tyrus Hill for a 90-79 advantage.
The Road Warriors attempted to come close but inside conversions from Arana and back-to-back three-point hits by Hill and Taylor Browne gave the FiberXers its largest lead at 101-85.
Arana finished the game with 11 points, all coming in the fourth quarter, while former Road Warriors’ Murrell and Hill connected 21 and 19 points, respectively, for the FiberXers.
BOX SCORE:
SAN MIGUEL 115 – Fajardo 30, Cruz 30, Enciso 16, Perez 12, Brondial 12, Herndon 5, Tautuaa 5, Lassiter 3, Zamar 2, Pessumal 0, Canete 0, Faundo 0.
TNT 99 – K. Williams 20, Castro 17, Montalbo 12, Erram 12, M. Williams 11, Pogoy 11, Ganuelas-Rosser 10, Alejandro 3, Tungcab 3, Khobuntin 0, Marcelo 0, Cruz 0.
Quarterscores: 26-22, 53-47, 83-71, 115-99./PN
