CHICAGO - As their unbeaten march to the playoffs has reached the PBA Commissioner's Cup Finals, it's hard not to notice the morbid talk surrounding San Miguel Beer.
"They got their own version of the 'Death Five'," Ginebra coach Tim Cone said of the vaunted starting unit that swept the Gins in the semifinals.
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Though flattered, San Miguel coach Jorge Gallent fired back a strong rebuttal.
"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 usually quiet Gallent was oozing with confidence and he had every right to.
Through four games in the playoffs the Beermen have left a trail of dead bodies at Philsports Arena, the Mall of Asia and the Araneta Coliseum.
Here's how good the flagship franchise of the SMC bloc is and why they are the prohibitive favorites to win all the marbles against sister team Magnolia.
THIS BEER GOT A LOT OF KICK.
Through 15 games this conference, the Beermen are averaging 100.8 points, 48.4 rebounds, and 22.6 assists per outing.
They are not an excellent 3-point shooting bunch, just 33.8 percent, but they hit their 2s at a lethal rate of 49.2 percent (378-of-769).
Import Bennie Boatright Jr was late to this party, but in the seven games since replacing Ivan Aska, Boatright has made a tremendous impact. A USC alum, he puts up 35.8 points and 10.1 rebounds.
As in previous campaigns, San Miguel is enjoying the luxury of having a "second import" in June Mar Fajardo.
A spate of short-term injuries have held the Cebuano giant to only nine games this conference but it hasn't stopped him from bagging 16.3 points and 11.3 boards when he's on the floor.
CJ Perez is ballin' la vida loca, puncturing defenses to the tune of 16.4 while Marcio Lassiter is hitting 3s at a ridiculous 46.6 percent clip. And when you add guys like Chris Ross, Mo Tautuaa, Jericho Cruz, Jeron Teng among others, San Miguel's roster is an embarrassment of riches.
UNGUARDABLE, AND AS GINEBRA FOUND OUT, UNBEATABLE.
Just don't tell that to the Hotshots. With a menacing defense that complements an offense that can go from warm to scalding in a hot minute, the Hotshots have the slingshot to slay Goliath.
Like San Mig, Magnolia has a similarly gifted import in ex-NBAer Tyler Bey, who is averaging 26.9 points and 13.9 rebounds in 16 assignments.
Bey does a lot, but under coach Chito Victolero's system, Tyler doesn't have to do everything. Thanks to a deep roster that includes Mark Barroca, Ian Sangalang, Jio Jalalon, Paul Lee and Calvin Abueva.
What a match-up this promises. San Miguel, which has been cruising through the competition, is on a collision course with some rough riders.
Magnolia had a lot of moxie, physicality. But the Beermen simply have too many weapons, too much experience.
I love some Magnolia ice cream but in this championship series, I reluctantly believe that San Miguel takes the cake.
P.S. Many thanks to Phoenix assistant coach Jon Jacinto for sending me the updated PBA stats.
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