AirAsia Patriots seek lead vs San Miguel Beermen

MANILA, Philippines—Aiming to build on their rousing start, the AirAsia Philippine Patriots go for the solo lead Saturday against a San Miguel side still trying to find its stride in the Asean Basketball League.

Yet Patriots coach Glenn Capacio is still wary of San Miguel, the preseason favorite which absorbed a shocking loss in their league debut.

“We’re going to play against a big team,” he said. “They have wing men who are bigger than us and they got the advantage size-wise.”

In what some pundits bill as a title-match preview, the Patriots shoot for a second straight victory against the Beermen at 6 p.m. at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.

The two Philippine squads got off to contrasting starts with the Patriots dumping the Bangkok Cobras, 86-58, at the start of the home-and-away regional tournament in Manila last Saturday.

After ruling a preseason tournament, the Beermen surprisingly absorbed an overtime loss against the Westports Malaysia Dragons, 77-83, in Kuala Lumpur.

“Overall, we just have to come back,” said San Miguel coach Bobby Parks. “We have to get back to work because we know it’s going to be tough against the Patriots.”

Just a month ago, however, the Beermen were much favored over the Patriots with a roster bannered by Filipino-Italian Chris Banchero, Cebu’s 6-foot-10 standout June Mar Fajardo and league veterans Froilan Baguion, Benedict Fernandez and Junjun Cabatu.

The two squads last met in the Bangkok preseason tournament where the Beermen downed the Patriots, 84-76, in the finals.

“We were still adjusting at that time,” said Capacio. “There was no stamina on the part of our imports. But this time, they’re all ready.”

True enough, Nakiea Miller came out charging against the Cobras as last season’s Best Import powered the Patriots with 24 points, 18 rebounds and four blocks.

Anthony Johnson, the Patriots’ other American reinforcement, shot 17.

In a bid to quickly boost their campaign, the Beermen tapped 6-foot-9 NBA D-League cager Doug Thomas early this week to replace Richard Jeter, who had a measly 11 points and two rebounds against the Dragons.