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San Miguel shrugged off the bitter memory of Game 3 and proceeded to dismantle, Barangay Ginebra, 101-72, to force a deciding Game 5 of their semifinals series in the 2016 PBA Governors’ Cup Sunday night at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Japeth Aguilar’s game-winner in the previous outing was all but an afterthought as the Beermen immediately established control of the game and took the fight out of the Gin Kings with a blistering second quarter run.
“Alam mo naman kapag Ginebra you cannot be sure of what can happen,” said SMB head coach Leo Austria, not wanting to leave anything to chance. “I’m so thankful we’re able to even the series and this is a good treat for the fans.”
“They know the situation and they’ve been there for the past two seasons and they know how to win. I hope this momentum will carry over to the next game for us to have a good start.”
The Beermen outscored the Gin Kings, 25-7, in the pivotal second period with Marcio Lassiter scoring 14 of his 25 points during that stretch.
“This was an urgent matter for the players,” said Austria, whose team led by as much as 33 points. “They were so quiet in the huddle, and they were so focused.”
Lassiter caught fire for San Miguel at the start of the second period as he unloaded 11 straight points, including three straight 3-pointers.
Reigning two-time MVP June Mar Fajardo had a 17-points, 16-rebound double-double while Elijah Millsap recorded 14 points and 17 boards.
Justin Brownlee carried the bulk of the offensive load for Ginebra leading the Gin Kings with 28 points while Tenorio had 17 points.
Aguilar, who had 22 points in Game 3 including the buzzer-beating jumper, was limited to a single point while Thompson was held scoreless with only one rebound and two assists after notching a triple-double on Friday.
The scores:
SAN MIGUEL 101 – Lassiter 25, Fajardo 17, Cabagnot 13, Millsap 13, Santos 13, Ross 9, Arana 3, De Ocampo 2, Espinas 2, Heruela 2, Mabulac 2, David 0, Reyes 0, Semerad 0, Tubid 0.
GINEBRA 72 – Brownlee 28, Tenorio 17, Devance 6, Cruz 5, Caguioa 4, Marcelo 4, Helterbrand 3, Bonifacio 2, Salva 2, Aguilar 1, Mariano 0, Mercado 0, Thompson 0.
Quarterscores: 30-22, 55-29, 82-52, 101-72