MANILA – Meralco Bolts overcame an endgame run by San Miguel Beermen for a 92-88 victory in Game 5 of the 2024 PBA Philippine Cup Finals last night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Leading 90-80 with over three minutes left, the Beermen surprised the Bolts with an 8-0 scoring run behind June Mar Fajardo, Marcio Lassiter, and Jaymar Perez to cut the deficit to 88-90 with seven seconds left.
Chris Newsome, however, stepped up for the Bolts with two free throws to make it 92-88 with 6.2 seconds remaining before forcing Lassiter to miss his last three-point attempt.
Allein Maliksi had his best game of the series with 22 points, including two three-point conversions, to go with five rebounds and one assist as the Bolts took a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven title series.
“Chinallege ko lang ‘yung sarili ko to step up,” Maliksi said. “Kasi kung maganda ‘yung laro mo, maganda ‘yung mga write ups sayo, pero kapag struggle ka, mga panget ang mababasa mo.”
Newsome added 22 markers, including a perfect 10-of-10 free throw shooting, along with five rebounds and five assists, while Raymond Almazan and Chris Banchero contributed 14 and 12 markers, respectively, for the Bolts.
Down 69-70 after three quarters, the Bolts opened the fourth period with conversions from Maliksi, Anjo Caram, and Banchero to take a 78-72 advantage early in the fourth quarter.
The Beermen got back-to-back hits from Jericho Cruz and Fajardo to cut the deficit to 76-78, but the Bolts answered with a shot from Brandon Bates, six straight points from Newsome and an Almazan bucket for a 90-80 lead.
Fajardo finished with a double-double of 38 points and 18 rebounds, while Perez chipped in 17 markers for the defending champions Beermen.
The Bolts, which lost in their previous five finals appearances in the league, can secure their first-ever PBA championship in Game 6 on Sunday evening, still at the Big Dome./PN
BOX SCORE:
MERALCO 92 – Maliksi 22, Newsome 22, Almazan 14, Banchero 12, Quinto 8, Hodge 6, Bates 6, Caram 2, Rios 0, Torres 0, Pascual 0.
SAN MIGUEL 88 – Fajardo 38, Perez 17, Romeo 6, Cruz 6, Lassiter 6, Tautuaa 5, Trollano 5, Ross 3, Manuel 2.
Quarterscores: 24-25, 47-46, 70-71, 92-88.
