The Beermen again put its nose out front in another classic battle with Barangay Ginebra Sunday night, winning, 89-86, to make the finals of the PBA Philippine Cup and frustrate a throng that backed up the Gin Kings at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.

"My players never gave up, even if we were the underdogs in the eyes of the fans," San Miguel coach Ato Agustin, who literally got into the action earlier because of the physical nature of the game, told reporters.

"It was like San Miguel against the world," he continued. "But we stayed focused and in a close game like this one, I had the confidence that we would win. The two games that we lost (in the series) were by big margins." Jay Washington hit a critical follow-up of a Danny Ildefonso airball to usher the Beermen ahead to stay before Arwind Santos hit two of four charities with under 10 seconds remaining that allowed San Miguel to close out the best-of-seven series, 4-2.

Next up for the Beermen is Talk 'N Text, the first finalist which dethroned Derby Ace also via a similar 4-2 series win Wednesday night.

Game 1 is slated at the Victorias Sports and Cultural Center in Victorias City in Negros, marking the first time that the league will be taking a championship game in the province in 10 years.

Ginebra fought hard all night but wound up with the shorter end of the stick yet again, blowing early control and several chances in the stretch to drop into a tie for third spot with the Llamados.

It was San Miguel sixth win in eight meetings with the Kings overall in the tournament, and it followed basically the same plot as their first five victories counting that double overtime thriller Wednesday last week that gave the Beermen a 3-1 series lead.

Santos, who won the Best Performer of the Elims award for topping the statistical points race over Joe Devance of Alaska, finished with 25 points, 12 of them in the fourth period alone as he kept the Beermen's collective heads above water.

Washington wound up with 12 markers and 15 boards and Dondon Hontiveros finished with 17. Alex Cabagnot, who had quite an interesting confrontation with Mark Caguioa in the second period, rifled in 11 points.

The game was physical to say the least, and it was emotionally-charged with the contest almost getting out of hand early in the second period when Caguioa and Rudy Hatfield and Cabagnot and Washington figuring in separate incidents that netted a total of four technical fouls being called inside the first three minutes.

Booed by the crowd every time he touched the leather, Cabagnot got it going against Caguioa with both almost coming to blows and Cabagnot almost had the last laugh when he drilled in a triple with 49.7 seconds left which made it 85-82 for the Beermen.

But Eric Menk tied the count for the last time by completing a three-point play off Danny Ildefonso with 38 seconds to go as the Big Dome literally shook with the crowd of more than 13,000 stomping its feet in approval.

Washington then hushed the gallery by being at the right place at the right time, as he grabbed Ilefonso's ugly miss and put the go-ahead basket in.

"We're just happy with this win," Washington said. "We worked so hard and it was a great, great team effort why we pulled this one out. For us, this was the Game 7. This was the do-or-die game for us because we wouldn't want to be facing them (in a Game 7)." Caguioa led the Kings with 21 points and Ronald Tubid accounted for 19, but the San Miguel defense held former two-time MVP Willie Miller to just two points.

Ginebra took a nine-point lead late in the first period only to be dragged into a see-saw game when San Miguel's defense finally clicked.

The Kings were held to just 17 points in the second period after scoring 28 in the first, and Ginebra would never score more than 22 points in each of the next two quarters.