Beermen survive first close shave by nipping Hotshots

CJ Perez (with ball) typifies the gritty, determined stand of the Beermen. —PHOTO BY AUGUST DELA CRUZ

Coach Jorge Gallent considers its narrow win against perennial contender but struggling Magnolia as an indication of the possibilities San Miguel Beer can produce in the PBA Governors’ Cup.

“This was really a big game for us, just to put us where we stand in this league,” Gallent said after the Beermen improved to 4-0 with a 100-98 escape act at Smart Araneta Coliseum that kept the Hotshots winless in the season-closing conference.

After winning by an average margin of 20 points in wins over Blackwater, Phoenix and Terrafirma, San Miguel had to weather a late Magnolia fightback and gain a share of top spot with Converge and NLEX after the two weeks of a compressed elimination round.

“It’s good that we won tonight, beating a strong team,” the Beermen coach continued. “Even with their record, I think they will come back.”

All of Gallent’s first five — import Cam Clark, June Mar Fajardo, Marcio Lassiter, CJ Perez and Simon Enciso — scored in double figures while also producing solid results on the defensive end as the Beermen remained unbeaten after Gallent was put in the spotlight after replacing longtime mentor Leo Austria.

Jericho Cruz and Rodney Brondial also came in and provided quality minutes in the victory, which once again epitomized the depth of San Miguel’s lineup.

“Everybody stepped up,” said Gallent. “What’s nice about them is that they give their 110 percent, even if they know they’ll play about five to seven minutes.”

Magnolia counterpart Chito Victolero offered to put some silver lining despite another stinging defeat that put the regular semifinalist in panic mode.

The Hotshots dropped to 0-3, but almost sneaked past the Beermen when they cut a nine-point deficit before Paul Lee missed a potential go-ahead three-pointer before the horn.

“For the last 2-3 conferences, we have had a good start. But now, we have a not-so good start,” Victolero said. “But we’ve been here before and we have to dig deeper in order for us to get our first win.”

The path toward a revival may have to start with a new import after reports that Magnolia will bring in former Terrafirma reinforcement Antonio Hester as a replacement for Eric McCree.

Hester is currently with the Zamboanga Valientes of the Asean Basketball League, and the Hotshots will start mulling the potential change before returning to action on Friday against the Phoenix Fuel Masters.

“Will try to assess within the next 24 hours, and then we will decide if we will change imports,” Victolero said after McCree scored just 13 points on a horrific four-of-18 shooting.

McCree’s struggles were a huge difference to another strong play from Clark, who produced 19 points, 10 rebounds and four assists for the Beermen.