TNT's grand slam bid in the PBA 49th Season will go through the traditional powerhouse squad of the Philippine Cup - San Miguel.
After letting a 16-point lead slip away last Sunday, the Beermen responded with a comeback of their own in Game 7, razing an 11-point third-quarter deficit to beat Barangay Ginebra, 100-93, on Wednesday in front of 12,279 fans at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
By outlasting their more popular sister team in a fiercely fought best-of-seven semifinal series that went the distance, the Beermen reached the finals of the Philippine Cup for the eighth time in the last 10 years.
This time, the mission is to stop TNT from becoming just the fifth team - and the first since San Mig in 2014 - to complete a PBA grand slam, just like what SMB, then carrying the banner of Petron, did to TNT in Game 7 of the 2011 Governors' Cup Finals.
To no one's surprise, SMB veterans June Mar Fajardo and Chris Ross, members of those championship runs of the past, were the central figures in the win that enabled the Beermen to reclaim their place in an all-Filipino finals.
Game 1 of the best-of-seven finals is set on Sunday at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
Fajardo finished with 21 points, 19 rebounds, and two blocks to close out the series, while Ross had his biggest scoring output of the season with 19 points, three rebounds, and seven assists, while also doing his job on defense by tallying four steals.
The Beermen stole the win after being down, 73-62, late in the third quarter. San Miguel went on a 15-4 tear to start the fourth to seize control.
Ross had nine points in the final period including a lay-up with 2:11 left that gave San Miguel its biggest lead, 98-89. In a previous play, Ross hit a three-pointer that got SMB ahead, 91-84.
“It’s very clear, they never gave up especially in the last quarter. We were down by 10 points, 60-70, and we were still able to score 100 points. That’s huge for us. The mindset of the players was positive,” said SMB coach Leo Austria.
San Miguel was forced to play a Game 7 after LA Tenorio knocked down a three with 3.1 seconds left to lose by one point, 88-87.
“We lost the last time. Everybody was so embarrassed and frustrated because it was a sure win. But talagang ganun ang basketball. It’s a game of runs just like what happened tonight,” said Austria.
Cjay Perez had 15 points and four assists, while Mo Tautuaa added 14 points and five rebounds. Don Trollano had 10 points, seven coming in the fourth, all during that pullaway to start the fourth.
Jamie Malonzo had 22 points, and Scottie Thompson posted 16 points, seven rebounds, and eight assists, but the Gin Kings got a dose of their own medicine when they failed to protect its big lead in the final period.
With the defeat, Ginebra will go without a championship in the 49th Season after finishing in second to TNT in the first two conferences including a Game 7 overtime defeat in the Commissioner's Cup.
