February 8 ------ MAGNOLIA finally put the clamps on San Miguel's high-octane offense on its way to an 88-80 win on Wednesday in Game 3 of the PBA 48th Season Commissioner’s Cup Finals at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum. The Hotshots turned Game Three into a low-scoring, defense-oriented face-off to finally claim a victory in the best-of-seven championship series and avoid falling into a 0-3 hole against the heavily favored Beermen.
Mark Barroca led the resurgent offense of Magnolia's locals as import Tyler Bey went on defensive mode for the bulk of the contest against Bennie Boatwright, who scored a game-high 27 points but was made to earn his four treys in the game. As a result, the Beermen didn’t breach the century mark for the first time in this finals while playing without guards Jericho Cruz and Terrence Romeo due to injuries.
Magnolia coach Chito Victolero said the two days in between games worked wonders as they were able to adjust their defense and get their legs back. “The key factor is that two-day rest. Medyo naka-recover ‘yung body namin. We had a hard time doing our defensive schemes [in the first two games]. I don’t want to make excuses but they are all human. Ramdam din ang pagod,” said Victolero, whose team has been playing with only a day break since the semifinal series against Phoenix. “But the good thing is we had that rest, nagawa namin ‘yung defensive mentality namin which is to limit our opponents to 88 points. Everytime they score 100 points, they have a bigger chance of winning. But if we limit them to less than 90 points, we have a bigger chance of winning,” said Victolero.
Barroca had 20 points, four rebounds, and six assists, while Paul Lee had 12 points including a three-pointer during an 11-0 run midway through the fourth quarter that gave Magnolia a 76-62 lead. Aris Dionisio had 11 points off the bench including a team-high three triples as Magnolia’s shots finally found its touch in the series. Calvin Abueva also had a solidall-around game with six points and seven rebounds in his first game since being fined P100,000 for mocking San Miguel coach Jorge Gallent's physical disability.
San Miguel briefly tasted the lead at 7-6 then played catch-up all game, trailing by as many as 16. After averaging 10 threes in the first two games, the Beermen were limited to seven in Game Three. The Beermen’s first defeat since Boatwright came aboard snapped an 11-game winning streak for the team.
The scores:
Magnolia 88 – Barroca 20, Lee 12, Bey 11, Sangalang 11, Dionisio 11, Jalalon 10, Dela Rosa 7, Abueva 6, Reavis 0, Laput 0, Escoto 0.
San Miguel 80 – Boatwright 27, Perez 16, Fajardo 11, Teng 10, Trollano 7, Lassiter 4, Brondial 3, Ross 2, Enciso 0, Tautuaa 0.
Source: spin.ph
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