SAN Miguel boosted its shot at taking the No. 1 seed in the PBA Philippine Cup after turning back a spirited Rain or Shine rally, 120-111, Saturday night in Cagayan de Oro City.
READ: SMB averts collapse vs. RoS to close in on playoff incentive
CJ Perez and Don Trollano delivered under pressure by hitting clutch baskets in the homestretch just as the Elasto Painters closed to within 103-102 from being down 25 in the late part of the third quarter.
Perez top-scored with 33 points and Trollano had 24 for the Beermen, who won a third straight game and improved to 7-2 for solo second place.
With two games left, SMB has a pretty good chance to upend frontrunning NLEX (8-2) in the chase for the top seed heading to the final week of eliminations.
Below are three takeaways from the final provincial foray of the conference at the Aquilino Pimentel International Convention Center.
1. SMB SWEEP OF LAST TWO GAMES WILL CLINCH NO. 1
The Beermen could clinch the No. 1 seed by winning their remaining games against Converge on Wednesday and NorthPort on Sunday. Meanwhile, NLEX has one more game left on Wednesday against the Batang Pier, who have long been eliminated and currently on an eight-game slide.
But even in the event of both teams ending up tied at first at 9-2, SMB will still claim the top spot by virtue of its 98-89 win over the Road Warriors in the two teams' head-to-head matchup. The only way disaster can strike the Beermen is if they lose their final two outings of the elims.
2. E-PAINTERS’ DOOMED FOR A FOR TOP 4 FINISH
The Rain or Shine loss against San Miguel hurt the former's chance to enjoy a twice-to-beat edge in the playoffs as incentive for a Top 4 finish in the elims. Currently, the Elasto Painters are tied with Converge at sixth-place with similar 6-4 records. They still have a game left against Barangay Ginebra in the final day of elims.
Given the Elasto Painters win against the Gin Kings and finish at 7-4, the other teams ahead of them had all beaten them – San Miguel, NLEX, TNT, and Magnolia. As such, it looks like RoS will have to make do with a twice-to-win disadavantage come the playoffs.
3. SMB DOMINATED ROS IN THE MIDDLE
The San Miguel frontcourt proved to be the game-changer in the win against Rain or Shine. With new all-time offensive rebounding leader June Mar Fajardo at the helm, the Beermen outscored the Elasto Painters in the paint, 52-34, and dominated the boards, 53-44.
Fajardo had 20 points and nine rebounds, while Perez was also active rebounding with eight. The eight-time MVP also had two of SMB's game-high 15 steals.
RoS managed to stay late in the game, though, by hitting 43 percent of their shots from three-point range (19-of-44), with Andrei Caracut going 5-of-7, Adrian Nocum 3-of-5, Jhonard Clarito 3-of-7, and Keith Datu 4-of-5.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
