THE PBA 49th Season Philippine Cup finals goes to the SM Mall of Asia Arena for Game 4 where San Miguel is going for a huge lead in the series to put TNT’s bid for a Grand Slam in serious jeopardy.
Why the Tropang 5G must win the fourth quarter and other keys to Game 4 in this preview.
SAN MIGUEL VS. TNT
When: Sunday, July 20. 7:30 p.m.
Where: SM Mall of Asia Arena
SMB goes for commanding 3-1 lead
San Miguel goes for a third straight victory in the finals following its dominant Game 3 108-88 win over TNT. A couple of teams that got a 3-1 series lead went on to win the title in the next game, including the Beermen in the 2016-17 Philippine Cup against Barangay Ginebra and the then-Tropang Giga in the 2021 Philippine Cup against Magnolia.
BPC awarding
Before Game 4, the Best Player of the Conference will be awarded, with June Mar Fajardo being the heavy favorite to capture the individual plum. He is gunning for a 12th BPC in his career - and his second this season.
READ: SMB teammates June Mar, CJ in two-way fight for PH Cup BPC
If Fajardo goes on to win, it is going to be the first time this season the award will go to a finalist. Of course, a victory in Game 4 will make the evening extra special for 'The Kraken.'
Poy out. Can TNT survive his absence?
Poy Erram missed Game 3 after sustaining a high ankle sprain - and he will not be on the floor again in Game 4, according to he himself.
READ: Poy Erram rules himself out of Game 4 due to high ankle sprain
Erram’s absence was very mich felt in Game 3 when Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser, Kelly Williams, and Henry Galinato Jr. took turns in defending Fajardo, only to all end up in foul trouble.
With Erram out, don’t be surprised if TNT continues to go deeper into its bench, perhaps with an appearance by Barkley Ebona to have more bodies to throw out there. The Tropang 5G must do a better job of defending without fouling.
Bench support
Speaking of the bench, it is going to be key once again for Game 4. In the previous match, Almond Vosotros gave TNT a spark with 14 points in 12 minutes of action, giving the Tropang 5G a 44-33 lead in bench points. TNT is already dealing with an injury to Erram and facing a deep San Miguel squad, so its reserves must step up.
CJ, Don, Marcio misfiring
San Miguel may have won Game 3, but for some of the players, there is definitely room for improvement, including Cjay Perez, Don Trollano, and Marcio Lassiter.
Perez had a relatively better outing in Game 3 with 12 points, but remains inconsistent shooting-wise in going 4-of-12 from the field. After scoring a game-high 22 points in Game 2, Trollano fired blanks from threes, missing all four of his shots from that territory to end up with 10 points. Lassiter is only 1-of-7 from his favorite spot in this series, including 0-of-3 in Game 3.
TNT must win the fourth quarter
During this championship series, TNT has not won the fourth quarter, even during its Game 1 win, averaging just 16.7 points in the final period.
Conversely, San Miguel has finished with a flourish in each of the ball games with an average of 25 per outing. In order to have a shot, the Tropang 5G must change the trend in Game 4.
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