AIR21 forward Sean Anthony is one win away from making PBA history once again.
The 6-foot-4 Anthony was part of the Powerade franchise that became just the second eight-seeded team in league history to beat a top seed in B-Meg (now San Mig) during the 2012 Philippine Cup quarterfinals.
On Tuesday, Anthony scored 21 of his team-high 25 points in the second half in leading seventh-seeded Air21 to a gigantic 92-79 victory over second seed San Miguel Beer in the quarterfinals of the Commissioner’s Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
With one more win against the twice-to-beat Beermen, Anthony and the rest of the Express can book the first semifinal appearance for the franchise.
Last season, the seventh-seeded Ginebra squad took down No. 2 seed Rain or Shine in the Commissioner’s Cup playoffs behind import Vernon Macklin’s heroics and went on to place second behind Alaska.
“It’s a great opportunity, right (to beat a seeded team in the playoffs)? In all reality, we have nothing to lose because no one expected us to win tonight,” Anthony told sports scribes after routing the fancied Beermen.
The former McGill standout said with man-mountain center Asi Taulava and import Wesley Witherspoon earning four fouls apiece in the third period, his instinct was to work hard and try to do everything he can to contribute for the Express.
And to think the hardworking Fil-Canadian big man is just playing his fourth game for the Express since coming off a hand injury that kept him out of action for the first six weeks of the tournament.
“But I’m getting more comfortable now. Sometimes, a little lost, still misses a lot of plays, but I know the majority of them,” he said.
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