The San Miguel Beermen rallied in the fourth quarter of Game 6 to beat the Magnolia Chicken Timplados Hotshots 104-102 and win the PBA Season 48 Commissioner's Cup crown Wednesday night.
Trailing 95-86 with less than five minutes remaining, the Beermen turned to CJ Perez, Jericho Cruz and Chris Ross as they led a 17-4 run for a 103-99 lead with 48 seconds left. Ross capped the run with a 3-pointer from the right corner that gave the Beermen the lead for good.
"My mindset was no turning back," said Cruz, who will play for Guam in the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers next week. "Binigyan nila ako ng open shot so I had to take it. Kumpiyansa lang. From there pumasok na rin ang mga tira ni Chris, ni CJ."
Jorge Gallent won his first title as head coach of the Beermen.
"They just didn't give up," Gallent said. "They just showed how composed they are. Even when we were down 9, 10, they didn't panic. They played in the flow and stepped up their defense, and good things happen when you play defense."
Perez finished with 28 points, 24 of which coming in the second half, although his two missed free throws with 9.6 seconds left almost cost the Beermen the game after Aris Dionisio hit a triple to make it 103-102.
"That first half, that wasn't me," Perez said.
Perez and Gallent had a heated exchange after Perez's dismal first half. Perez was a totally different player from there. He scored 12 in each of the last two quarters on a variety of shots, as no one on the Hotshots roster appeared capable of staying in front of him.
It was an especially bitter loss for Magnolia's Paul Lee, who was celebrating his birthday and scored a team-high 25 points. Magnolia was in control for majority of the game, leading by as many as 14.
The Beermen increased their championship total to 29, the best in league history. The road to this latest title was bumpy. They went through two imports - Tyler Stone and Ivan Aska - before signing up Bennie Boatwright. San Miguel started the conference 3-3 but turned things around after Aska was told he would be replaced.
"The last two games of Ivan Aska," Gallent said. "He really played his butt out. Those games were against top teams (Ginebra and TNT) that lifted us up. He knew he was gonna get changed, but he still played his heart out."
Those two wins sparked a franchise-best 11-game winning streak, which included a stunning three-game sweep of defending champions Barangay Ginebra San Miguel in the semifinals. Magnolia tied the Commissioner's Cup Finals at two games apiece before San Miguel reasserted command.
The league will take a two-week break before the San Miguel Beermen embark on defending their Philippine Cup title in the final conference of the season.
