MANILA: In less than two quarters on Sunday night, San Miguel Beer wiped the smile away from the faces of the Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings.
The Beermen made Ginebra look pitiful in the first half of Game 4, ripping the Gin Kings to shreds, 101-72, to knot their best-of-five Final Four series in the PBA Governors’ Cup and take momentum going into the rubber match Tuesday at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.
Ahead by just eight after the first period, San Miguel held the Kings scoreless for the first eight minutes of the second and got Marcio Lassiter cranking up the offense as he shot 11 straight points against the dumbfounded Ginebra defense that the Beermen weren’t able to recover from.
“I don’t know what my team ate before this game, but they came out smoking,” San Miguel coach Leo Austria told reporters after the blood bath, which disappointed a huge chunk of the crowd of more than 22,000 that anticipated Ginebra closing out the series.
Instead, the sister teams are now on equal footing, and the confidence level of the Beermen have gotten a huge boost while the collective psyches of the Kings just suffered a huge dent going into the decider.
“Game 3 was fun, today was absolutely not fun,” Ginebra coach Tim Cone said, referring to the joy they experienced after a 97-96 win on Friday that gave them a 2-1 lead and made them wear smiles coming into Sunday night’s game.
“They (Beermen) just beat us up, we just couldn’t match up,” Cone went on as only Justin Brownlee and LA Tenorio finished in double digits for Ginebra. “I felt we were a little bit worn out from Game 3 (emotionally) and I sensed it in practice (on Saturday).
“We just have to learn to play together in a series like this one,” Cone said. “Unlike San Miguel, they really know how to bounce back.”
Lassiter drained three straight triples to open up the second period before adding a short jumper from deep left corner, and what stood as a slim 30-22 lead at the start of the quarter ballooned to 19.
San Miguel would lead by as large as 30 before the first three quarters ended and it made Cone give up early as he pulled out his starters one by one.
“When (coach Cone) saw that (we were up big), he did not play his key players,” Austria said after Ginebra played its reserves in the final period.
“That means he is already preparing for the next game,” he explained. “I’m sure it will be a different ballgame for them (in the rubber match).”
And while Cone elected to do that, Austria kept on stepping on the pedal in the fourth, only easing up with just over three minutes remaining.
“A 30-point loss is just a loss in a series like this,” Cone said. “We’re fortunate to be playing a Game 5.”
Lassiter went on to make 7-for-9 from beyond three-point range and finish with 25, with June Mar Fajardo, the hot choice for a record third straight MVP, and import Elijah Millsap finishing with double-doubles.
Fajardo had his game face on the entire night and drained 17 points that went with 16 rebounds, while Millsap had 16 and 17.
Brownlee had 28 points and Tenorio 17, but the San Miguel defense shut down the others that did a lot of damage in Game 3, with Japeth Aguilar making just one point and Scottie Thompson, who finished with a triple double on Friday, winding up scoreless.
Meanwhile, Meralco goes for the kill – and the first title series slot – against sister team TNT KaTropa on Monday night with the Bolts shooting for a third straight win in the 7 p.m. contest.
The Beermen made Ginebra look pitiful in the first half of Game 4, ripping the Gin Kings to shreds, 101-72, to knot their best-of-five Final Four series in the PBA Governors’ Cup and take momentum going into the rubber match Tuesday at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.
Ahead by just eight after the first period, San Miguel held the Kings scoreless for the first eight minutes of the second and got Marcio Lassiter cranking up the offense as he shot 11 straight points against the dumbfounded Ginebra defense that the Beermen weren’t able to recover from.
“I don’t know what my team ate before this game, but they came out smoking,” San Miguel coach Leo Austria told reporters after the blood bath, which disappointed a huge chunk of the crowd of more than 22,000 that anticipated Ginebra closing out the series.
Instead, the sister teams are now on equal footing, and the confidence level of the Beermen have gotten a huge boost while the collective psyches of the Kings just suffered a huge dent going into the decider.
“Game 3 was fun, today was absolutely not fun,” Ginebra coach Tim Cone said, referring to the joy they experienced after a 97-96 win on Friday that gave them a 2-1 lead and made them wear smiles coming into Sunday night’s game.
“They (Beermen) just beat us up, we just couldn’t match up,” Cone went on as only Justin Brownlee and LA Tenorio finished in double digits for Ginebra. “I felt we were a little bit worn out from Game 3 (emotionally) and I sensed it in practice (on Saturday).
“We just have to learn to play together in a series like this one,” Cone said. “Unlike San Miguel, they really know how to bounce back.”
Lassiter drained three straight triples to open up the second period before adding a short jumper from deep left corner, and what stood as a slim 30-22 lead at the start of the quarter ballooned to 19.
San Miguel would lead by as large as 30 before the first three quarters ended and it made Cone give up early as he pulled out his starters one by one.
“When (coach Cone) saw that (we were up big), he did not play his key players,” Austria said after Ginebra played its reserves in the final period.
“That means he is already preparing for the next game,” he explained. “I’m sure it will be a different ballgame for them (in the rubber match).”
And while Cone elected to do that, Austria kept on stepping on the pedal in the fourth, only easing up with just over three minutes remaining.
“A 30-point loss is just a loss in a series like this,” Cone said. “We’re fortunate to be playing a Game 5.”
Lassiter went on to make 7-for-9 from beyond three-point range and finish with 25, with June Mar Fajardo, the hot choice for a record third straight MVP, and import Elijah Millsap finishing with double-doubles.
Fajardo had his game face on the entire night and drained 17 points that went with 16 rebounds, while Millsap had 16 and 17.
Brownlee had 28 points and Tenorio 17, but the San Miguel defense shut down the others that did a lot of damage in Game 3, with Japeth Aguilar making just one point and Scottie Thompson, who finished with a triple double on Friday, winding up scoreless.
Meanwhile, Meralco goes for the kill – and the first title series slot – against sister team TNT KaTropa on Monday night with the Bolts shooting for a third straight win in the 7 p.m. contest.
