San Miguel flexed its offensive muscle as it thrashed Titan Ultra anew, 143-113, to seize a playoff seat in the PBA Season 50 Governors’ Cup on Wednesday at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City.
George King dropped 39 points on top of 10 rebounds to spearhead a balanced assault that powered the streaking Beermen’s second-quarter breakaway en route to an improved 7-2 record for an assured spot in the crossover quarterfinals, according to PBA chief statistician Fidel Mangonon III.
San Miguel notched its third straight dominant victory while replicating its 143-105 beatdown of Titan in the first round of eliminations as the Leo Austria-coached squad drew 70 big points from its bench unit.
“The good thing today is, everybody’s enjoying themselves. It seems na nagkakaroon na ng good chemistry,” said Austria.
“The bench is performing really well and then almost balanced scoring,” he added. “But we should not be complacent because come playoff time it’s a different ballgame.”
Later in the second game, Jerom Lastimosa erupted for a career-high 30 points as Magnolia exacted its revenge against Phoenix, 115-101, and nabbed a third consecutive win for a 4-3 slate in Group B.
Don Trollano drilled 21 points and 10 boards and Marcio Lassiter chalked 15 markers for the Beermen, who broke free from a 26-32 deficit and took a commanding 62-46 lead late in the second frame that they never relinquished.
Rodney Brondial also pumped in a double-double with 13 points and 17 rebounds, Jerrick Ahanmisi added 11 markers, while eight other SMB players chipped in at least three points in the romp.
Tirrell Brown had a huge 34-point, 13 board double-double but did not get enough support from the locals as Titan fell in danger of missing another playoffs after skidding to 2-7.
Fran Yu and John Amores had 11 points apiece while Jerrick Balanza had 10 markers for the cellar-dwelling Giant Risers.
In the nightcap, KJ Buffen poured 35 points and 10 rebounds to join forces with Lastimosa in powering Magnolia’s vengeful victory against Phoenix after losing 86-98 in their first encounter last month.
Mark Barroca logged 21 points, six boards, and four assists even as Ian Sangalang contributed 10 markers and six rebounds for coach LA Tenorio’s Hotshots, who snatched the No. 2 spot with a quotient advantage over the Fuel Masters.
BJ Johnson had 27 points and boards while Ricci Rivero had 16 markers for Phoenix, which absorbed back-to-back defeats.
The scores:
First game
SAN MIGUEL 144 – King 39, Trollano 21, Lassiter 15, Brondial 13, Ahanmisi 12, Teng 9, Cruz 6, Tautuaa 6, Hernandez 6, Fajardo 6, Mantua 4, Calma 4, Cahilig 3, Ross 0
TITAN 113 – Brown 34, Yu 11, Amores 11, Balanza 10, Pessumal 9, Javillonar 9, Dionisio 8, Caralipio 5, Sumang 4, Cuntapay 4, Ular 4, Sajonia 4
Quarters: 26-27, 64-50, 99-78, 143-113
Second game
MAGNOLIA 115 – Buffen 35, Lastimosa 30, Barroca 21, Sangalang 10, Lucero 9, Andrada 5, Alfaro 3, Dela Rosa 2, Jopia 0, lee 0, Koon 0
PHOENIX 101 – Johnson 37, Rivero 16, Tuffin 12, Ballungay 12, Mamuyac 10, Tio 7, Santos 3, Escandor 2, Chua 2, Perkins 0, Delos Santos 0, Reavis 0
Quarters: 28-33, 60-49, 82-84, 115-101