SMB, Ginebra elude upset ax

ANTIPOLO—Arwind Santos scored on a short jumper with six-tenths of a second left and saved an over-complacent San Miguel Beer side from Barako Bull, 106-105, as the Beermen grabbed the lead in the Smart Bro-PBA Philippine Cup at Ynares Center here.

The 2013 MVP, playing with a stiff hamstring, won out in a loose ball scramble after a Marcio Lassiter miss before hitting the game-winner as the Beermen dodged the upset axe and rose to 5-1 overall.

“A one-point win is still a win, and I will accept it with all my heart,” San Miguel coach Leo Austria said in Filipino. “You can see early on that we were very complacent. I hope this game gives us a lesson. You have to take every team here seriously.”

June Mar Fajardo scored 28 points and grabbed 20 rebounds, while Santos finished with 15 that went with six boards for the Beermen.

Barako Bull saw a two-game run come to a halt and dropped to a level 3-3 card.

The Energy almost pulled it out after RR Garcia, the hero in their last win, drilled a three-pointer by dusting off Lassiter with a brilliant crossover for 105-104 going into the final 10 seconds.

With so little time to work with, Garcia, who was coming off a 26-point night in a 93-85 win over Mahindra exactly a week ago, also threw up an airball in the last Barako Bull possession.

Josh Urbiztondo paced the Energy with 19 points but wasn’t in the endgame because reserve point guard Jeric Fortuna keyed a whirlwind Barako Bull finish that fell just short.

RONALD Tubid of San Miguel soars for a layup off Mick Pennisi of Barako Bull. AUGUST DELA CRUZ

Barangay Ginebra was another powerhouse that went through the proverbial eye of the needle before slipping past Mahindra, 80-76, in the second game.

The Gin Kings won back-to-back games for the first time under new coach Tim Cone and climbed to 3-3 while dealing the game Enforcers a fifth loss in six games.

Greg Slaughter had his lowest-scoring game of the young season with 16 points and Joe Devance was adjudged the game’s best player after shooting 14.
Japeth Aguilar and new acquisition Jervy Cruz had 12 and 10 points, respectively, for the Kings.

“We’re just trying to grind out wins at this point,” Cone, the two-time Grand Slam champion, said as he acknowledged that the Kings are not yet fully accustomed to the system that had made him the league’s winningest coach of all time.

Karl Dehesa paced the Enforcers with 17 markers.

The scores:

First Game

SAN MIGUEL 106—Fajardo 28, Tubid 16, Santos 15, Cabagnot 12, Espinas 11, Lassiter 11, Lutz 4, Ross 3, Arana 2, De Ocampo 2, Heruela 2, Reyes 0.

BARAKO 105—Urbiztondo 19, Wilson 18, Pennisi 15, Garcia 14, Baracael 9, Brondial 7, Fortuna 6, Monfort 6, Intal 5, Lanete 4, Caperal 2, Miranda 0.
Quarters: 28-18, 48-55, 76-80, 106-105

Second Game

GINEBRA 80—Slaughter 16, Devance 14, Aguilar 12, Cruz 10, Caguioa 7, Ellis 6, Mercado 4, Salva 4, Marcelo 3, Tenorio 2, Thompson 2.

MAHINDRA 76—Dehesa 17, Ramos 13, Pascual 12, Yee 10, Bagatsing 8, Guinto 6, Revilla 6, Hubalde 2, Pinto 2, Alvarez 0, Canaleta 0.
Quarters: 21-15, 38-42, 57-60, 80-76