JAY WASHINGTON pumped in a season-high 28 points as San Miguel Beer rolled past B-Meg Derby Ace, 101-88, last night to seize a 1-0 lead in their PBA Fiesta Conference best-of-seven semifinal series at the Araneta Coliseum.
The 6-foot-7 Washington poured 14 of his output in a blistering third-quarter assault that allowed the well-rested and fired-up Beermen to pull away for good.
“J-Wash was a big part of our success tonight,” said San Miguel coach Siot Tanquingcen of Washington, who also grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out four assists.
“He was passing the ball well. He was good defensively.”
In the second game, Alaska came out with a strong second half performance to rip top seed Talk ‘N Text, 104-88, and also take a 1-0 lead in their semifinal bracket.
The Beermen flashed a fluid offense and a suffocating defense to outscore the Llamados, 35-13, in the third period.
Dragged to five games in the quarterfinals, the Llamados looked like a spent force in the second half after engaging the Beermen in a nip-and-tuck battle in the first two quarters.
Llamados import Tony Washam, three days removed from his 49-point explosion in the series-clinching win over Rain or Shine, was held to just 23 points this time as San Miguel sent double teams to clamp down on him.
“We were not just a step behind, but three to four steps behind,” said B-Meg Derby Ace coach Ryan Gregorio.
Washington sparkled on both ends of the floor, throwing down three dunks and completing a three-point play in a four-minute stretch.
San Miguel closed out the quarter with a 16-2 blast, capped by a triple from Jonas Villanueva that gave the Beermen their biggest lead at 79-55.
The scores:
SAN MIGUEL BEER 101—Washington 28, Freeman 23, Santos 15, Hontiveros 15, Villanueva 8, Pena 4, Racela 3, Cabagnot 2, Seigle 2, Miranda 1, Yeo 0, Ildefonso 0, Pennisi 0.
B-MEG DERBY ACE 88—J. Yap 24, Washam 23, Simon 12, Artadi 7, Timberlake 6, Maierhofer 6, Pingris 4, Adducul 2, Reavis 2, R. Yap 2, Canaleta 0, Allado 0.
Quarters: 25-21, 44-44, 79-57, 101-88
Second Game
ALASKA 104—Simpson 19, De Vance 19, Hugnatan 16, Tenorio 13, Baguio 13, Dela Cruz 9, Fonacier 5, Thoss 4, Robinson 4, Eman 2, Borboran 0, Cablay 0.
TALK ‘N TEXT 88—De Ocampo 20, Cardona 17, Daniels 13, Carey 13, Castro 6, Reyes 6, Alapag 6, Williams 3, Dillinger 2, Aban 2, Yee 0, Quinahan 0.
Quarters: 20-26, 44-46, 78-68, 104-88