SMB batters Ginebra in rebound win

San Miguel Beer made good use of the long break to address its lapses in the previous game for a mighty rebound win over Barangay Ginebra, 104-93, in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup Friday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.  

A blistering 22-6 start set the tone for the blowout that saw the Beermen go up by as many as 24 points for their third victory in four outings.

“The players were very eager to beat Ginebra. We’re able to watch their (opening) game. They played organized, one thing that we want to do. So, we pressured them and outhustled them. That’s the only way we can beat an organized team,” San Miguel Beer coach Leo Austria said after his team bounced back from an overtime loss to Magnolia before the Holy Week break.

CJ Perez dropped 23 points, pulled down six rebounds and dished out five assists with two steals and a block for an all-around performance in San Miguel’s wire-to-wire triumph.

Don Trollano added 19 points while ace center June Mar Fajardo muscled his way to a double-double of 18 markers and 12 boards for the Beermen, who punished the Kings with 12 triples.

Jericho Cruz added 11 points while Juami Tiongson and Marcio Lassiter had 10 markers each for San Miguel, which saw the debut of newly acquired forward JM Calma.

The Beermen maintained a safe distance throughout the game as Perez drained a pair of crucial four-pointers to douse cold water on Ginebra’s uprising attempts.

San Miguel went up, 104-81, late in the fourth with the game already decided.

The Kings slipped to a 1-1 win-loss card, tied with Rain or Shine.

Troy Rosario had 24 points and eight rebounds while Stephen Holt and Jamie Malonzo finished with 16 each for Ginebra. Scottie Thompson had 14 markers, six rebounds and six assists while Japeth Aguilar had a quiet 12 points following a 30-point explosion in the Kings’ demolition of Terrafirma last Wednesday.

The scores:

SAN MIGUEL (104) --- Perez 23, Trollano 19, Fajardo 18, Cruz 11, Tiongson 10, Lassiter 10, Rosales 8, Calma 4, Teng 1, Brondial 0, Cahilig 0, Tautuaa 0, Ross 0

GINEBRA (93) --- Rosario 24, Holt 16, Malonzo 16, Thompson 14, J.Aguilar 12, Abarrientos 6, Pinto 3, Ahanmisi 2, R.Aguilar 0, Adamos 0, Cu 0

Quarters: 25-11, 48-30, 83-65, 104-93