Beermen go for it today vs Warriors
THE SAN Miguel Beermen hope to get their chemistry back when they go for another shot at the Asean Basketball League crown today against the dangerous Indonesia Warriors.
The Beermen, who failed to close out the series on the road, fight for the Season 3 championship against the Warriors in the winner-take-all Game 3 at 4 p.m. at Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig.
“We have to come out aggressively from the start,” said San Miguel coach Bobby Parks. “It’s understandable that everybody wanted to win so bad [in Game 2] but we relied on our individual games rather than a team game.”
Hardly showing the cohesion that made them the top seed, the Beermen took a 20-point drubbing from the Warrriors, 81-61, in Game 2 in Jakarta last Saturday.
And unlike in their 86-83 Game 1 win, the Beermen also got beaten off the boards (37-21) and dished out only 10 assists compared to their 26 in the series opener.
Most Valuable Player awardee Leo Avenido vows to lead the Beermen along with Chris Banchero, June Mar Fajardo, Roger Yap, Nick Fazekas and Duke Crews.
“It’s a dream to win [the MVP] but the most important thing is still the championship, and that is a team effort,” said Avenido.
The Warriors, bannered by Mario Wuysang, Stanley Pringle, Evan Brock and Steve Thomas, are also bracing for San Miguel fightback.
“We know it’s going to be tough game playing on the road against San Miguel, but we are excited and ready to play,” said Thomas, named as this season’s Defensive Player of the Year.
