San Miguel tries to end Thai hopes

San Miguel Beer goes for a title berth in the Asean Basketball League (ABL) tonight with the Beermen bracing for  another physical encounter against Sports Rev Thailand  at Nimiburt  Stadium in Bangkok.

“There was a lot of physical contact [in Game 3] so I told my boys to keep their cool and focus on the game,” said San Miguel coach Leo Austria. “We called the attention of the league officials about this. But the most important thing is to stick to the game plan.”

The Beermen hope to finish off the Slammers in Game 4 at 7 p.m. (8 p.m. Philippine time)  just a couple of days after taking Game 3 for a 2-1 lead in their best-of-five series.

Fielding an all-Filipino squad in the last three minutes, the Beermen survived the Slammers’ huge run for a 70-62 triumph.

Asi Taulava and Eric Menk delivered big down the stretch, knocking in clutch shots and hauling down key rebounds after American imports Brian Williams and Justin Williams had fouled out.

The Slammers nearly wiped out the Beermen’s 21-point cushion, 39-18, and came close to 68-62 with less than a minute left.

“I was expecting this kind of game,” said Austria. “The Slammers refused to lose and that’s why they made a good run in the second half.”

The scores:

SAN MIGUEL BEER 70–B. Williams 14, Taulava 13, J. Williams 9, Banchero 7, Avenido 7, Hubalde 6, Menk 5, Cawaling 5, Fortuna 2, Acuña 2.

SPORTS REV THAILAND 62–Charles 17, Baguion 13, Dasom 10, Klahan 8, Brannon 4, Ghogar 4, Apiromvilaichai 2, Kongkum 2, Gonzaga 2, Lertlaaokul 0, Samerjai 0.

Quarters: 27-12, 44-26, 50-41, 70-62