SAN Miguel Beer is in seventh heaven, while Talk ‘N Text is probably on the opposite end of the earth.
The Beermen sustained their surge and extended the misery of Tropang Texters in the PBA Governors’ Cup with a 101-96 decision on Tuesday night at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
SMB overcame an early 17-point deficit behind AZ Reid, Marcio Lassiter, and Arwind Santos to notch a seventh successive victory that formalized their entry to the quarterfinals.
“Even though they (Texters) were struggling, I knew they will go all out, but I’m happy to see my players na hindi nag-give up especially after the first quarter,” Beermen coach Leo Aurstria said.
The Beermen, who improved to 7-2 (win-loss) and put up their longest winning streak under Austria and since a 7-0 start in last season’s Philippine Cup, dealt the Tropang Texters their fourth straight loss that left their victims stuck in ninth spot with a 3-5 record.
The Beermen fell in a 32-15 hole early in the second, but rallied behind
Reid registered 29 points, including nine in the second quarter, where the Beermen rallied from17-points down (32-15) early in the period to tie the count at halftime.
The versatile SMB import, who had vowed to improve his shot selection after shooting 12-of-32 from the field against NLEX, wound up shooting slightly better at 12-of-26 for 46 percent as he played with just one minute of rest.
Santos took over in the third period, scoring eight of his 14 points as the Beermen took command for good.
Jayson Castro was his vintage self, tallying 25 points, seven assists, and five boards, and one steal, while Steffphon Pettigrew added 17 points for the Texters, who were still on top, 52-51, early in the third quarter, but never came closer than five points since SMB took the lead.
The scores:
SMB 101 – Reid 29, Lassiter 15, Santos 14, Cabagnot 11, Tubid 10, Fajardo 9, Espinas 7, Ross 4, Lutz 2, Reyes 0
TNT 96 – Castro 25, Pettigrew 17, Fonacier 11, Miller 10, Daghles 8, Williams 8, De Ocampo 8, Seigle 4, Carey 2, Rosser 2, Washington 1
Quarterscores: 15-28; 45-45; 75-67; 101-96.
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