FOR the second time in five days, Eastern got the better of San Miguel, this time in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup following a 99-91 overtime win Sunday at the Philsports Arena.
The Hong Kong side dropped nine straight unanswered points in the extra period to finally tame the defending champions and inflict Leo Austria his first PBA loss in his return as San Miguel head coach.
Eastern improved to 6-2 as it bounced back from its 120-113 loss to league leader Northport, while the Beermen went down at 3-3 as they snapped out of a two-game win run.
The other half of the Dec. 22 doubleheader featured Rain or Shine going on a late scoring run to survive a win-starved Terrafirma side, 124-112.
The Elasto Painters kept their winning streak and improved to 4-1 overall even as the Dyip remained winless in seven outings.
Here are the takeaways in the penultimate playdate of the league for 2024.
1.EASTERN A SERIOUS TITLE CONTENDER
It may not be in the same class as fellow Hong Kong team Bay Area Dragons, but the team of coach Mensur Bajramovic is in line as a top contender for the mid-season championship.
The guest team hasn’t gone down from the upper half of the standings and is close to clinching a berth in the playoffs more than halfway to its campaign.
Without making excuses, Eastern was obviously tired during its game against the Batang Pier from the hustle and bustle of travelling, arriving in the country Thursday after beating the Beermen in Hong Kong the night before, and then playing Northport on Friday.
Truth be told, the guest team could turn out to be the dark horse entry this conference.
2.REVERSAL OF ROLES FOR GLEN YANG AND KOBEY LAM
It used to be Lam being the reliable and steady player over Yang during their time together as backcourt partner at Bay Area Dragons. But with Lam struggling with his game, Yang has taken over the baton and rose to become as the top gun at the point for Eastern.
The 28-year-old guard was in his element in the team’s rematch against the Beermen, torching the defending champions for PBA-high 26 points on 4-of-5 shooting from three-point line, while adding four rebounds and four assists.
It’s a good thing Yang has played for a long time under coach Bajramovic, which could be the reason why he’s been thriving calling the plays for Eastern.
3.SAN MIGUEL IN SEARCH FOR ANOTHER BENNIE BOATWRIGHT?
The Beermen brought in their third import in Jabari Narcis to replace Torren Jones, who played for just two games including a stint in the EASL. Jones was actually a replacement for Quincy Miller.
The pattern was the same which the team did in last year’s edition of the Commissioner’s Cup when it also went through three import changes in Tyler Stone, Ivan Aska, before landing a jackpot in the 28-year-old Boatwright, who guided the franchise to the championship. Will the same formula worked for the Beermen this time?
4.TERRAFIRMA BOASTS OF YOUNG, PROMISING TALENT
Despite its current woes, the Dyip actually have some young good pieces in their roster in the likes of Louie Sangalang, Brent Paraiso, Paolo Hernandez, Mark Nonoy, CJ Catapusan, Tommy Olivario, and Aljun Melecio, most of them experienced winning championships during their collegiate career.
It was actually these young guns who gave the Elasto Painters hell, only to falter in the stretch as Rain or Shine’s experience was too much to overcome.
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