San Miguel back in PBA Philippine Cup finals anew after ousting Phoenix

MANILA, Philippines–Coming off the heels of a masterful victory, it was clear that the reigning champions remain the force to be reckoned with in the prestigious PBA Philippine Cup.

San Miguel Beer took everything the top-seeded Phoenix Pulse could offer on Thursday night, and still pulled out a 105-94 Game 5 win at Cuneta Astrodome to book its fifth straight Finals appearance—the second most in the league’s storied history.

Chris Ross scored 24 points, his most in the semifinals, as the Beermen closed this half of the semifinals and moved closer to preserving their historic four-time reign in the all-Filipino conference.

Alex Cabagnot joined the scoring fray, unloading 22 points—15 of those coming from the three-point stripe, while five-time Most Valuable Player June Mar tossed in 17 more.

LA Revilla, Phoenix’s diminutive guard, figured as the biggest threat for San Miguel. He tallied 15 points—second to Matthew Wright’s 20—to help bring the Fuel Masters pull within eight.

From there on, Wright and RJ Jazul took turns in clipping the lead, but was turned back by a jumper from Terrence Romeo, who has yet to taste his first trip to the Finals.

San Miguel now awaits the winner of the Magnolia-Rain or Shine series, that could be decided Friday, 7 p.m. at Ynares Center in Antipolo.