Gutsy Beermen bounce back sans import

Game today (Smart Araneta Coliseum)

7 p.m. – Alaska vs Meralco

MANILA, Philippines - San Miguel Beer sacked erring import Tyler Wilkerson but didn’t give up the fight, turning to the team’s old reliable gunners and fighting spirit to hack out a nerve-wracking 104-98 victory over Rain or Shine and force a Game Four in their Oppo PBA Commissioner’s Cup Final Four showdown last  night at the Philsports Arena.

Without an import and all the distractions they were facing, the Beermen went to Marcio Lassiter, Alex Cabagnot and Arwind Santos who responded with A-1 performances to reduce their deficit to 1-2 in the best-of-five semifinal series.

The Beermen, however, still need to win two in a row to salvage the series and stay on course for a possible third straight championship.

They have to do it with a new import since the team has terminated the services of Wilkerson, the Best Import leading contender until he threw tantrums in the closing minutes of Game Two.

San Miguel is bringing in a new import by Saturday or before Game Four set Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Marcio Lassiter erupted for 30 points including five three-pointers, Alex Cabagnot exploded for 28 markers spiked by two treys while Arwind Santos sizzled with 18 points including four triples as the Beermen lived to fight another game.

“I have to praise my players. They willed to win in the absence of an import. They proved something,” said San Miguel coach Leo Austria.

“It would be very hard to win three straight games without an import. We’re lucky to win today or we would’ve already be instead joining the Boracay Cup. I hope this would be a rallying point for the team,” Austria also said.

Minus Wilkerson and his whopping averages of 36.6 points, 14.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.7 blocks and 1.4 steals, the Beermen banked on sheer guts and determination to turn back the E-Painters and hulking import Pierre Henderson-Niles.

Also a big key for the Beermen was sending Niles to an early foul-trouble situation that limited him to 29:25 minutes of action where he put in seven points, 11 rebounds and two assists against five turnovers.

The E-Painters, with a career-best game from Jericho Cruz plus solid efforts from Maverick Ahanmisi, Paul Lee and JR Quiñahan, had looked poised to ending the series as they opened a 60-51 lead at the start of the second half.

But Cabagnot, Lassiter and Santos strung up six straight three-pointers from there, lighting up a decisive attack that turned the tide in SMB’s favor, 80-67.

In the crunch, the Beermen made key stoppages to stay alive and keep their hopes for a rare treble.

Rain or Shine enjoyed a 53-51 edge at the end of the tight first half marked by a fierce shootout between gunners of both teams.

Meanwhile, Alaska Milk and Meralco slug it out in what could well be another defense-versus-offense battle, disputing the 2-1 lead in their side of the semifinals tonight at the Big Dome.

and Lee combined for 6-of-7 three-pointers and a total of 30 points for the E-Painters while Cabagnot, Lassiter and Santos fired four treys and a total of 34 markers in the first 24 minutes of play.

 Lassiter, with a horrendous 2-of-20 field shooting Games One and Two, sizzled with a 6-of-9 clip just in the first half in this contest.

 “Even if Wilkerson was scoring in the 40s, 50s, I can see my locals are not happy,” said Austria.

Will Alaska Milk spring back with enough energy to apply defensive pressure in full four quarters? Or will Meralco come out swinging, slugging and scoring again?

The Aces and the Bolts slug it out in what could well be another defense-versus-offense battle for the pivotal 2-1 lead in Game Three of the Oppo PBA Commissioner’s Cup best-of-five semifinal showdown tonight at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Meralco broke Alaska’s defensive wall on Jared Dillinger’s outside sniping and Chris Newsome’s penetrations in the fourth quarter as the Bolts came from behind to pull off a 92-87 decision and forge a 1-1 tie in their side of the semis series Wednesday.

“We’ve got to make the outside shots. We’ve got to shoot without hesitation as they’re really loading up on Arinze (Onuaku),” said Dillinger, saving the Bolts from falling to a 0-2 hole on his 13-point fourth-quarter explosion in Game Two.

The Bolts struggled for their points through the first three quarters before finding a way to break Alaska’s lockdown defense and subsequently avenge their 94-97 loss in Game One.

“We have to make our outside shots to open up the floor,” said Meralco coach Norman Black.

Alaska coach Alex Compton made no excuses for the setback, saying the Bolts made the right plays while the Aces broke down in the crunch.

“They executed down the stretch and really more than anything, they made the shots down the stretch. Our transition defense was poor and our rotation was late,” said Compton.

But even with the Game Two defeat, the Aces aren’t expected to deviate from their ploy – keep the defensive pressure all the way.

They were successful with that Monday where they forced the Bolts to 22 errors, leading to a crucial 28-18 advantage on points from turnovers and to the three-point win in the series opener.

On Monday, the Aces did a good job particularly on Onuaku whom they forced to commit four errors and held to measly 11 points.

But as Dillinger, Newsome and Reynel Hugnatan found their marks Wednesday, Onuaku also found some opening, leading to a solid all-around game marked by 22 markers, 14 boards and six assists.

“I have to give a lot of credit to JD (Dillinger) for opening up the defense by hitting his outside shots. Chris Newsome scored on layups that also helped break the defensive lane,” said Black shortly after Game Two.

The one-time grand slam-winning coach also lauded their import for sticking in the game despite the double- and triple-teaming defense that he faced all game long.

“Arinze’s much more effective,” said Black.

Dillinger proved to be the biggest key with his fourth quarter burst capped by back-to-back treys that carried Meralco ahead to stay at 88-84.

Finding the opening on Alaska’s constant helping defense on Onuaku, Dillinger drained five-of-10 three-pointers on the way to a personal conference high of 20 points.

NOTES: The Mahindra management and coaching staff meet today to discuss who will take over from Chito Victolero to call the shots for the Enforcers. “Chito resigned due to health reasons. Most probably, anyone from among our current staff will take over. Nandyan naman si coach Joe Lipa as coaching consultant,” team manager Eric Pineda told The STAR. Listed in the Mahindra coaching staff are Rob Wainwright, Chris Gavina, Marlon Martin, Romulo Orillosa and Alex Angeles.

The scores:

SAN MIGUEL 104 – Lassiter 30, Cabagnot 28, Santos 18, Fajardo 13, Espinas 5, De Ocampo 4, David 3, Ross 2, Araña 1, Heruela 0, Tubid 0.

RAIN OR SHINE 98 – Cruz 25, Lee 15, Ahanmisi 12, Quiñahan 11, Chan 8, Almazan 7, Henderson-Niles 7, Belga 5, Norwood 4, Ponferada 4, Ibañes 0, Tiu 0.

Quarterscores: 27-31, 51-53, 80-70, 104-98