AZ Reid admits San Miguel took Blackwater lightly

In terms of history, no other team in the PBA can match up to San Miguel but for one night in the 2018 Governors’ Cup humble Blackwater was able to write its own footnote.

The Elite were able to stun the mighty Beermen, 103-100, for their second straight win and import AZ Reid knows why they lost to a team that bears little history.

“We took them lightly, we didn’t play the way we normally play, like the way we played in the first game,” said Reid Wednesday at Smart Araneta Coliseum. “We played around, a lot of smiling, a lot of joking, so we lost.”

San Miguel was ahead 82-74 heading into the fourth quarter but the Elite chipped away at the margin throughout the period.

After falling behind 92-91 off of Chris Ross’ three at the 5:46 mark, the Elite mounted a 7-0 run to take a 98-92 lead on Henry Walker’s triple with 3:29 left in the game.

The Elite hung on to the lead as the clock ran out to go up 2-0 in a surprise start.

“We started relaxing, chilling, and thinking it’s funny, laughing, and joking,” said Reid who finished with 26 points and 12 rebounds. “Just keep your mouth shut and try to play the best that you can, and hopefully you come out on top.”

The loss sent the Beermen to fall to the seventh seed with a 1-1 record instead of being at the second spot with a 2-0 card and tied with Magnolia and Blackwater.

San Miguel, though, will have more than two weeks of break as the PBA heads into recess to accommodate the fourth window of the Fiba World Cup Asian Qualifiers.

“We just got to regroup and hopefully everyone takes it seriously next time,” said Reid. “We got to stay tough, mentally tough, get a lead and not fold, not break. We broke tonight, and it resulted in a loss.”