Duel against giants as June Mar Fajardo, Asi Taulava jockey for position. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
San Miguel Beer inched closer to top ranking in the Smart Bro-PBA Philippine Cup playoffs, getting the lift in overtime from a center not named June Mar Fajardo.
Yancy de Ocampo, Fajardos chief backup at the slot, scored the first five points of the Beermen in extra time and keyed an 88-80 victory over NLEX at Cuneta Astrodome that again put the Beermen in the driverÕs seat of the season-opening tournament.
Those five points came just minutes after De Ocampo lost possession that led to a Jonas Villanueva triple on the other end with 13.4 seconds left that eventually forged extension at 78-all.
“Thank God we salvaged this game, this is very important for us,” San Miguel coach Leo Austria told reporters. “He (De Ocampo) redeemed himself in overtime. I have to give credit to him for keeping his focus and concentration.”
De Ocampo played his best game in two seasons, finishing with 17 points and 12 rebounds as the Beermen rose to 8-1 with two games remaining, temporarily breaking out of a tie with idle Alaska.
The Road Warriors, on the other hand, dropped to 4-5 and would need a sweep of their last two games in order to gain a twice-to-beat advantage in the first phase of the quarterfinals.
Displaying poise after blowing a 24-point third quarter lead, GlobalPort sealed a twice-to-beat bonus in the first phase of the quarterfinals by nipping Meralco, 108-104, in the first game.
The Batang Pier roared to a third straight win for 6-3 overall and a sixth place finish, at worst, at the end of the elimination round.
“We’ve accomplished our objective of gaining a twice-to-beat (advantage),” GlobalPort coach Pido Jarencio said in Filipino.
Meralco all but saw the lights go out after dropping to 1-9 to be alone in the cellar with just a game left.
The scores:
First Game
GLOBALPORT 108—Romeo 33, Pringle 19, Washington 15, Mamaril 8, Yeo 8, Jensen 7, Kramer 7, Maierhofer 6, Sumang 3, Semerad 2.
MERALCO 104—Alapag 18, Hodge 17, Nabong 13, Hugnatan 12, Faundo 11, Newsome 10, David 8, Buenafe 7, Dillinger 4, Amer 3, Caram 1, Al-Hussaini 0.
Quarters: 26-22, 55-44, 87-73, 108-104
Second Game
SAN MIGUEL 88—De Ocampo 17, Cabagnot 17, Tubid 14, Santos 9, Fajardo 9, Arana 9, Heruela 7, Reyes 4, Lutz 2, Omolon 0, Ross 0.
NLEX 80—Villanueva J. 20, Taulava 20, Anthony 12, Borboran 10, Villanueva E. 8, Enciso 6, Lanete 2, Khobuntin 1, Reyes 1, Alas 0, Camson 0.
Quarters: 20-10, 37-34, 59-56, 78-78, 88-80