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CJ Perez (with the ball) symbolizes the gritty, determined stands of the Beermen. —PHOTO BY AUGUST DELA CRUZ
Coach Jorge Galent considered the narrow win against perennial contender but struggling Magnolia an indication of San Miguel Beer’s chances of producing in the PBA Governor’s Cup.
“It was a big game for us, just to put us in this league,” Galent said after the Beermen went 4-0 with a 100-98 escape at the Smart Araneta Coliseum that kept the Hotshots winless in the conference season finale.
After winning by an average margin of 20 points in wins over Blackwater, Phoenix and Terrafirma, San Miguel had to overcome the final battle of Magnolia and get the top division with Converge and NLEX after two weeks of compressed elimination rounds.
“It’s good that we won tonight, beat a strong team,” said the Beermen coach. “Even with the record, I think I’ll be back.”
All of Galent’s first five – Cam Clark, June Mar Fajardo, Marcio Lassiter, CJ Perez and Simon Enciso – scored in double figures while also producing solid results on the defensive end as the Beermen remained undefeated after Galent stepped into the spotlight after his substitution. Leo Austria’s longtime mentor.
Jericho Cruz and Rodney Brondial also came on and provided quality minutes in the win, which again illustrates the depth of San Miguel’s lineup.
“Everybody’s up,” Galent said. “What’s good about him is that he gives 110 percent, even when he knows he’s going to play about five to seven minutes.”
Magnolia partner Chito Victolero bid to put on some silver linings despite another loss that left the regular semifinalist in panic mode.
The Hotshots fell to 0-3, but nearly edged the Beermen as they erased a nine-point deficit before Paul Lee missed a potential three-pointer before the horn.
“For the last 2-3 conferences, we have started well. But now, we have a bad start,” said Victolero. “But we’ve been here before and we have to dig deeper to get our first win.”
The path to revival may have to start with new imports after reports that Magnolia will bring in former Terrafirma supporter Antonio Hester as a replacement for Eric McCree.
Hester is currently with Zamboanga Valientes of the Asean Basketball League, and the Hotshots will begin thinking about potential changes before returning to action on Friday against the Phoenix Fuel Masters.
“Will try to assess in the next 24 hours, then we will decide whether we will change the import,” said Victolero after McCree scored only 13 points in a terrible four-of-18 shooting.
McCree’s struggles were a huge difference to another strong game from Clark, who had 19 points, 10 rebounds and four assists for the Beermen.
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