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June Mar Fajardo churns out his usual MVP numbers, allowing San Miguel to tie the semifinals at 2-2 and avoid a perilous 1-3 deficit against Barangay Ginebra
MANILA, Philippines – San Miguel leans on June Mar Fajardo when the going gets tough.
That proved to be the case on Wednesday, October 16, as Fajardo towed the Beermen to a series-equaling 131-121 win over Barangay Ginebra in Game 4 of their PBA Governors’ Cup semifinals at the Araneta Coliseum.
Fajardo finished with 29 points on an excellent 12-of-15 shooting to go with 16 rebounds and 3 assists, allowing San Miguel to tie the best-of-seven affair at 2-2 and avoid a perilous 1-3 deficit.
The reigning eight-time MVP redeemed himself after being limited to just 12 points and 14 rebounds in a narrow 99-94 loss in Game 3 last Sunday, October 13.
“My teammates were looking for me and feeding me the ball down low. I just made my shots,” said Fajardo in Filipino. “The whole team stepped up.”
The Beermen survived a 49-point explosion by Gin Kings import Justin Brownlee as EJ Anosike and CJ Perez also reached the 20-point mark.
Anosike produced 27 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 assists, while Perez put up 20 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds, and 2 steals in the wire-to-wire win that saw San Miguel lead by as many as 20 points in the fourth quarter, 122-102.
Three more breached double-figure scoring for the Beermen, with Marcio Lassiter and Don Trollano firing 15 points each and Terrence Romeo adding 14 points.
With momentum on its side, San Miguel aims to snap the trend of alternating victories in the series as it seeks to become the first team to win back-to-back games on Friday, October 18, at the Ynares Center in Antipolo.
“I just hope we change the tide on Friday,” said Beermen head coach Jorge Gallent. “I just hope that tradition breaks on Friday.”
Brownlee turned in his highest scoring performance of this playoffs as he shot 20-of-26 from the field, but the Gin Kings simply were not able to match the offensive firepower San Miguel flaunted.
Stephen Holt scored 17 points, Scottie Thompson posted 15 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals, while Japeth Aguilar and rookie RJ Abarrientos netted 12 and 11 points, respectively, in the loss.
The Scores
San Miguel 131 – Fajardo 29, Anosike 27, Perez 20, Lassiter 15, Trollano 15, Romeo 14, Cruz 8, Ross 3.
Barangay Ginebra 121 – Brownlee 49, Holt 17, Thompson 15, J.Aguilar 12, Abarrientos 11, Ahanmisi 5, Tenorio 5, Pinto 3, Adamos 2, Devance 2, Cu 0.
Quarters : 34-28, 62-56, 99-85, 131-121.
– Rappler.com
