Beermen face test of character



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Games today:
(Ninoy Aquino Stadium)
5:15 p.m. — Terrafirma vs Macau
7:30 p.m. — San Miguel Beer vs Titan Ultra
San Miguel Beer eyes a quick rebound from a setback that snapped its winning streak in a clash with bottom-dweller Titan Ultra in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Season 50 Governors’ Cup today at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
A test of character awaits the Beermen in the 7:30 p.m. main game in Group A following the 5:15 p.m. curtain-raiser featuring back-to-back win-seeking guest team Macau and Terrafirma.
San Miguel saw its three-game winning romp snuffed out by red-hot NLEX, 96-110, last Sunday, which pulled the squad down into second place.
How the Beermen will react after giving away 23 fastbreak points and 23 points off turnovers in the previous game, where they went down by as many as 25, will be answered when they march back into the battlefield to face a team desperate to lift itself out of the cellar.
Despite the loss, San Miguel has seen the steady return of nine-time Most Valuable Player June Mar Fajardo back to his lethal form. In fact, he logged 15 points and six rebounds in 34 minutes of play, which is a good sign of his recovery from an elbow injury.
George King, of course, remains the Beermen’s focal point on offense with CJ Perez, Don Trollano, Jerick Ahanmisi, Rodney Brondial and Marcio Lassiter also backing him up.
On the other hand, the Giant Risers are also trying to pick themselves up from a 126-132 loss to the Giant Pandas last Saturday, just days after notching a huge upset over depleted defending champion TNT, 103-87.
Titan Ultra, which hopes to end the first round on a high note, holds a 1-4 slate tied with Macau.
After a 0-4 start, the Giant Pandas finally got the monkey off their backs in a gritty comeback from 19 points down.
“We got Terrafirma next so we’ll study their game tonight and we’ll prepare for them next,” Macau coach Marcus Elliott said.
“Hopefully, we can string together the next two to three games and win a majority of those,” he added.
Ramon Cao, who came up with crucial 10 points in the Giant Pandas’ decisive 12-4 run in the final period of their win, De’Vondre Perry, Jenning Leung, Kobe Lam and Damian Chongqui will lead Macau’s charge.
The Dyip, meanwhile, aim to level their 2-3 slate at the close of their first-round campaign.
Sitting in fourth spot, Terrafirma wants to create a little more breathing room and take advantage of its 111-106 overtime win over TNT last Saturday.