JERICHO Cruz had a team-high 23 points and San Miguel grabbed a commanding 3-1 lead in the PBA 49th Season Philippine Cup Finals with a 105-91 victory over TNT on Sunday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
Cruz knocked down two consecutive threes at a critical time in the fourth quarter to move San Miguel within a win from regaining the all-Filipino championship and putting an end to TNT's grand slam dream.
The Beermen get their first of three tries at winning the title in Game 5 on Wednesday night at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
READ Fajardo makes it a dozen Best Player of Conference awards
Cruz’s three from the right wing and another from the left corner put San Miguel ahead, 84-79. The Beermen gathered momentum from there in another explosive fourth quarter that saw them outscore the Tropang 5G, 41-24.
Cruz actually had three threes in the fourth, the other one coming at the 8:02 mark that got San Miguel ahead for good, 76-72.
The Beermen trailed, 14-2, to start the game, but had grabbed the lead by halftime, 45-37.
“Although very slow start, ‘yun ‘yung sinasabi ko sa kanila before na killer instinct. When it comes to the endgame, you should not give up. And that’s what happened,” said San Miguel coach Leo Austria.
Cruz shot 5-of-7 from threes and San Miguel had its best outing from the outside by connecting on 13-of-24 from rainbow country in Game 4.
Cjay Perez had his best offensive outing of the finals after tallying 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field, while June Mar Fajardo contributed 15 points, 12 rebounds, three steals, and two blocks on the night where he received the 12th Best Player of the Conference award of his career.
Jordan Heading had 23 points and five assists for TNT. His three-pointer to start the fourth quarter gave TNT the lead briefly, 67-64, following a 30-19 third quarter but the Beermen regained the upperhand in no time.
Kelly Williams and Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser helped TNT in that strong start, with both players tallying 14 points and seven rebounds each.
Poy Erram also suited up for the match-up despite a high ankle sprain and ended up with six points and four rebounds.
The scores:
San Miguel 105 – Cruz 23, Perez 16, Fajardo 15, Trollano 11, Lassiter 10, Tiongson 8, Ross 7, Teng 6, Tautuaa 4, Calma 3, Brondial 2, Cahilig 0.
TNT 91 – Heading 23, Williams 14, Ganuelas-Rosser 14, Pogoy 11, Oftana 11, Khobuntin 7, Erram 6, Vosotros 3, Nieto 2, Aurin 0, Heruela 0.
Quarters: 21-23; 45-37; 64-67; 105-91.
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