Philippine Cup Best Player of Conference Fajardo on course for 4th plum

MANILA, Philippines - San Miguel Beer main man June Mar Fajardo has continued to dominate the PBA in his fifth season, making him a strong contender for a fourth straight Philippine Cup Best Player of the Conference award.

At the halfway mark of the single-round-robin elims, the Cebuano behemoth leads the pack with a whopping statistical point average of 44.2 built around his regular double-double outing.

GlobalPort scoring machine Terrence Romeo (37.5), SMB combo guard Alex Cabagnot (34.6), Ginebra athletic center Japeth Aguilar (33.2) and Blackwater top rookie Mac Belo (33.0) are Fajardo’s closest rivals in the stats race.

The next five are another Beerman Arwind Santos (31.3), Alaska do-it-all forward Calvin Abueva (31), TNT KaTropa top gun Jason Castro (30.3), Phoenix Petroleum top rookie Matthew Wright (30.2) and Meralco slasher/gunner Chris Newsome (29.8).

The 6-10 Fajardo enjoys a significant lead over his rivals with his imposing averages of 20.2 points (tournament second-best) and 17.2 rebounds (league best).

Going with those numbers are bonus points earned on their front-running 5-1 win-loss record.

If the Beermen would able to sustain their run and go deep into the playoffs, Fajardo may yet earn another coveted individual award.

As the most dominant player seen in the PBA since Ramon Fernandez, Fajardo has already collected four BPC plums and a record three straight Most Valuable Player honors. Topping his resumé are three PBA championships.

The closest threat to Fajardo is Romeo with his league-leading averages of 27.0 points and 6.3 assists. The former FEU star also puts in 2.5 rebounds an outing.

In his finest start in a season, Cabagnot, meanwhile, norms sterling all-around numbers of 18.2 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.0 assists.

But Cabagnot’s status is uncertain at the moment after suffering a broken nose in their last game against Meralco.

“We don’t know yet the procedure the doctor will order him to undergo, if there’s any,” said SMB coach Austria. “I’ve told Alex don’t be in a hurry. Just be ready before the playoffs.”

“Sayang, he’s now seeing the fruit of his hard work. He’s the first guy coming and last guy going in our practice. The tough fadeaway shots he makes in the game, he does that in practice. And he’s the most conditioned player in our team. Just take a look at his abs,” said Austria.

Cabagnot had piled up 20 points, including 3-of-5 three-pointers before being rushed to the hospital for a busted nose inflicted by Cliff Hodge’s wayward hand Wednesday.

Aguilar is among the stats leaders, being the lead guy of Ginebra in its 3-3 start. The lanky 6-foot-9 center averages 20.0 points and 8.5 rebounds.

Belo has easily been the standout among all the rookies, making 17.0 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.7 steals a game – numbers that made him No. 5 in the stats race.