SAN Miguel made an early exit in the PBA 50th Season Commissioner's Cup in a stint marred by import changes and injuries after winning two championships prior to this conference.
The Beermen's conference came to an end on Saturday after they were eliminated by Rain or Shine, 113-104, in the quarterfinals, ending their quest to not only win three straight conference championships but also a chance at a Grand Slam during the 50th Season.
READ: JMF admits import carousel a drawback as San Miguel crashes out
San Miguel won the 49th Season and 50th Season Philippine Cup in consecutive fashion. But the Beermen's elimination round campaign was a shaky one when June Mar Fajardo, Cjay Perez, Jericho Cruz, Don Trollano, and Chris Ross dealing with injuries.
The Beermen started with a 1-2 win-loss record including a loss to eventual cellar dweller Titan Ultra to begin the conference. They also were 4-5 at some point of the conference that also included a defeat against Blackwater before winning the last three games.
The Beermen also had to go through two import switches with Marcus Lee replacing Justin Patton after three games. Patton, a former NBA player, went AWOL in one of the games, and was later replaced by Bennie Boatwright, who became available when his stint in Korea ended early April.
But the return of Boatwright, who helped San Miguel win the Season 48 Commissioner's Cup in 2024, wasn't enough to salvage the Beermen's campaign.
SMB ended the eliminations with a 7-5 win-loss record but was only good for No. 6, and was eventually ousted by Rain or Shine, which had two chances at knocking SMB out of the conference.
Austria said the rocky beginning to the conference affected the Beermen even after the return of Boatwright and the other locals due to injuries. Austria also lamented complacency at the beginning of the conference after winning the Philippine Cup title twice.
“It's not only the loss that we got from Rain or Shine,” said Austria.
“It's something to do with the start ng conference. We were struggling. Very costly yung mga talo namin sa teams na nasa bottom. If ever na manalo kami doon, probably we would have been in the top four.”
“We were so complacent after winning the two championships after the all-Filipino. They thought na kayang kaya namin. Because of injuries dahil nag-start yung conference na si June Mar, CJay, and Jericho, because of Gilas and Guam, pagdating nila, may mga injuries. That's why our performance at the start, napakasama."
While they were able to regain footing with Boatwright onboard, there's a big chane that they wouldn't have been facing a twice-to-beat advantage had they secured a steady reinforcement early on.
“We were able to recover in the middle of the tournament. But changing an import, it's not really good at the start. Mabuti na lang nandiyan si Bennie, naka-recover kami for awhile. Still, binabalikan ko yung bad start namin sa conference dahil the last few games namin, saka lang naka-recover yung players from injuries,” Austria said.
“Si Jericho, si Trollano, nag-miss din ng mga games. Si Chris Ross, nag-miss din I think half of the elimination round. Before we were able to get the cohesiveness, (but this conference), hindi namin makuha. May adjustment pa rin pagdating ni Bennie Boatwright. But hindi nangyari yung inaasahan namin.”
Austria said other teams have also bolstered their respective squad by bringing in taller imports that could neutralize the strengths of San Miguel, contributing to their downfall this conference.
“Yun ang iniisip ng iba, we are the only team that only has a chance yung sinasabi nating Grand Slam. For me, mailap yung Grand Slam dahil every team is trying to beef up their teams and naka-level up na sila in terms of talent. Like this conference, June Mar is dominating underneath but that didn't happen because of the presence of bigger imports.”
“Actually, we had a chance to win kahit man lang yung semi-Grand Slam, yung three-peat, three consecutive wins, hindi nangyari,” said Austria.
Austria said he plans to beef up San Miguel's preparations for the Governors' Cup after the premature Commissioner's Cup exit.
“It's a lesson learned for us. We were so disappointed because there’s a lot of people expecting us to get into the semifinals," he shared.
"It requires a lot of hardwork. Babalikan na namin yung preparation namin before the start of the conference because for me, winning a championship starts in the preseason,” he added.
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