THE current San Miguel group is already being labeled as another version of ‘Death Five’ by Barangay Ginebra coach Tim Cone, obviously referring to the past Beermen team that had the likes of June Mar Fajardo, Arwind Santos, Chris Ross, Marcio Lassiter, and Alex Cabagnot.
But for Beermen coach Jorge Gallent, he would rather call his team as the ‘Death 15’ in honor of the entire group that is now one win away from reaching the PBA 48th Season Commissioner’s Cup.
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“Everybody is capable,” said Gallent. “There’s no ‘Death Five’ here. It’s ‘Death 15.’ Everybody is good here. They wouldn’t be here if they weren’t good.”
The Beermen once again showed their depth in overcoming the Gin Kings, 106-96, to move one win away from sweeping their best-of-five semifinals series.
Bennie Boatwright once again dominated with 38 points and nine assists, while CJ Perez (17 points, seven rebounds), June Mar Fajardo (17 points, 14 rebounds, six blocks), and Marcio Lassiter (16 points) also contributed in the win.
As if the Beermen didn’t already need more firepower, Jeron Teng also stepped up to the fray with the San Miguel newcomer adding seven points and two assists in eight minutes and 45 seconds of court time.
“This is a strong team that we have,” said Lassiter. “We have 10 guys and even more. Everyone can contribute.”
“Like Jeron Teng, he was huge from off the bench. He gave us great minutes. Every now, it can be anyone’s night for us. That’s the quality and confidence in our team. The coaches instill that having confidence in each of us. It showed tonight,” Lassiter said.
Despite their firepower, Gallent is also guarding his team against complacency as the Beermen will have three chances to finish off the Gin Kings as Tim Cone is definitely capable of forcing this series to a decider.
“If we don’t play as a team, he (Cone) can because he is a great coach and he has a great team. We have to come out stronger,” said Gallent.
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