San Miguel erased a five-point deficit in the final minutes to claim the much-needed victory in Game 2 of its PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup battle for the crown with Meralco.
CJ Perez shone all-game long while Marcio Lassiter delivered the finishing touch with a booming trey as San Miguel foiled Meralco, 95-94, in Game 2 of the PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup finals on Friday, June 7 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Perez fired a playoff career-high 34 points, including a clutch triple with 22 seconds left on the clock that allowed the Beermen to close in, 92-93.
That set up the stage for Lassiter’s own stepback trey from the left corner with 13.2 ticks to go that proved to be the game winner.
“It’s for Marcio or CJ. We’re really going for that three,” said San Miguel coach Jorge Gallent, referring to the play that led to Lassiter’s dagger of a three-pointer.
CJ Perez of San Miguel tries to shake off Meralco defender Cliff Hodge. | Photo (c) Sherwin Vardeleon
The series is now tied at one game apiece.
Perez also had four rebounds, five assists, and five steals as the Beermen wiped out a five-point deficit, 81-86 entering the final five minutes of action.
Don Trollano scored back-to-back baskets to ignite a mini 8-2 surge and regain a precarious 89-88 lead with still 1:22 remaining.
Bong Quinto responded with a baseline floater, before Chris Banchero sank a crucial triple for a 93-89 advantage with only 25.6 ticks left.
That’s when Perez and Lassiter took over and made the two triples that salvaged the Beermen from the jaws of defeat.
“We just picked up our defense when we’re down by five going into the last [five] minutes. I think we had two to three stops there that gave us our fastbreak points,” said Gallent.
“Offensviely, we’re just pushing the ball down and looking for open players. Fortunately, the shots of cj and marcio [went in].”
June Mar Fajardo had to bleed to score 17 points. He also had 13 rebounds, two assists, and three blocks.
The San Miguel win, meanwhile, spoiled a 25-point performance by Cliff Hodge, who also grabbed nine rebounds.
Chris Banchero and Chris Newsome chipped in 16 and 14 points, respectively.
The Scores:
SAN MIGUEL 95 – Perez 34, Fajardo 17, Trollano 12, Tautuaa 10, Cruz 7, Lassiter 6, Ross 5, Brondial 2, Teng 2, Enciso 0
MERALCO 94 – Hodge 25, Banchero 16, Newsome 14, Quinto 9, Maliksi 8, Rios 6, Bates 6, Torres 5, Caram 3, Pascual 2, Almazan 0, Jose 0
Quarterscores: 21-22, 49-48, 69-73, 95-94