San Miguel moved just a win away from a rare elimination round sweep in the PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup as they celebrated the contributions of their vital cog, Arwind Santos .
On a day it retired Arwind Santos' jersey, San Miguel played inspired basketball and ripped Blackwater apart, 124-109, in the PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig on Wednesday, May 1.
The Beermen started strong then turned it up a notch in the fourth to stay unscathed in 10 games while officially eliminating the Bossing at 3-7.
At halftime, San Miguel gave nine-time champion and former Most Valuable Player Santos the ultimate honor with a brief ceremony on his jersey retirement.
[RELATED STORY: PBA: Chris Ross says Arwind Santos’ jersey retirement with San Miguel ‘well-deserved’ honor]
It took the Beermen the entire whole third quarter to heat up anew as they buried Blackwater for good in the fourth period.
“I told them to play for Arwind. Let’s not ruin his night by losing today,” said SMB coach Jorge Gallent.
“They stepped up. They really played well in the third and fourth quarters. Kudos to the players.”
Among those who stepped up was CJ Perez who scored over 25 points for the sixth straight game with 26 he embellished with five rebounds, five assists, and a steal.
Santos’ Death Five teammate and seven-time MVP June Mar Fajardo churned out 21 points and 16 rebounds, while Don Trollano fired six three-pointers on his way to 25 points.
Terrence Romeo and Marcio Lassiter added 12 and 11 points, respectively.
The Beermen raced off to a 32-24 start, sputtered in the middle quarters, before outgunning the Bossing in the final frame.
James Kwekuteye, Troy Rosario, and Jaydee Tungcab paced Blackwater with 15 points each.
Christian David had 12 points.
The Scores:
SAN MIGUEL 124 – Perez 26, Trollano 25, Fajardo 21, Cruz 14, Romeo 12, Lassiter 11, Brondial 9, Teng 4, Manuel 2, Enciso 0, Tautuaa0, Malillin 0, Ross 0.
BLACKWATER 109 – Tungcab 15, Kwekuteye 15, Rosario 15, Hill 13, David 12, Casio 8, Chua 8, Ilagan 7, Suerte 5, Nambatac 5, Guinto 2, Escoto 2, Sena 2, Jopia 0, Yap 0.
Quarterscores: 32-24, 60-53, 88-80, 124-109