MANILA, Philippines – Marcio Lassiter saved the day for the San Miguel Beermen as they kicked off their PBA Commissioner’s Cup campaign with a nail-biting 107-104 win against the Phoenix Fuel Masters at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium on Tuesday, December 3.
With San Miguel trailing by 1, 103-104, after a tough basket by Phoenix guard Tyler Tio with 14 seconds to play, Lassiter responded with a baseline jumper with only 2.3 ticks remaining to give the Beermen a slim 105-104 lead.
That basket by Lassiter proved to be the game-winner as RJ Jazul’s inside pass to Fuel Masters import Donovan Smith off the timeout got intercepted by June Mar Fajardo in the next play.
Aside from Lassiter, newly acquired San Miguel forward Andreas Cahilig came through the clutch as he scored all his 12 points in the final frame, spearheading the Beermen’s comeback from as many as 16 points down.
With Phoenix slowly pulling away with an 87-71 lead early in the fourth, Cahilig knocked down three consecutive long bombs to pull San Miguel within just 7, 80-87, at the 8:21-mark of the quarter.
Cahilig did not stop there as he sank another triple at the 4:39-mark, followed by a three-pointer by Juami Tiongson in San Miguel’s next possession to tie Phoenix at 98-all with 3:48 to play.
Also playing in his first game in a San Miguel uniform following a blockbuster trade from the Terrafirma Dyip, Tiongson finished with 8 points on 3-of-10 shooting, 2 rebounds, and 5 assists.
It was CJ Perez who topscored for the Beermen with 18 points, while Lassiter poured in 15.
San Miguel import Quincy Miller and Don Trollano also breached double-digit scoring with 14 points each, as the eight-time PBA MVP Fajardo was held to only 8 points on 4-of-10 field goal clip.
The Beermen overcame a monster double-double outing by Smith, who produced 37 points and 15 rebounds for the Fuel Masters in their third loss in as many games.
San Miguel also spoiled an impressive performance by Tio, who racked up 23 points for Phoenix, with 18 of those coming in the second half.
Meanwhile, the NLEX Road Warriors picked up their second straight win and handed Terrafirma its third consecutive beating following a 104-85 wire-to-wire drubbing in the first game.
Robert Bolick torched Terrafirma with a game-high 32 points on an ultra-efficient 11-of-14 shooting, while NLEX import Mike Watkins sustained his dominance in the Commissioner’s Cup as he posted another massive double-double of 26 points and 30 rebounds.
It was a sweet victory for the Road Warriors as they also welcomed the return of Kevin Alas, who played his first game back since November 2023 after recovering from a third ACL injury.
Alas came up with 2 points on 1-of-3 shooting in 10 minutes and 30 seconds of action for NLEX, which hiked its record to 2-1.
Vic Manuel led the Dyip in the scoring department for the second game in a row with 22 points, while Aljun Melecio and Kevin Ferrer contributed 10 markers each.
After suiting up for just 1 second in their previous outing due to back spasms, Terrafirma import Ryan Richards – who is set to be replaced by Brandon Edwards – only played in the first half this time around, finishing with 6 points on a lowly 2-of-10 field goal clip and 7 rebounds in over 17 minutes.
The Dyip fell to a 0-3 card as they continued to miss the services of their newly acquired star Terrence Romeo due to an injury.
The Scores
First Game
NLEX 104 – Bolick 32, Watkins 26, Torres 15, Semerad 13, Rodger 7, Herndon 3, Bahio 2, Fajardo 2, Valdez 2, Alas 2, Mocon 0, Amer 0, Marcelo 0.
Terrafirma 85 – Manuel 22, Melecio 10, Ferrer 10, Pringle 9, Zaldivar 7, Nonoy 6, Richards 6, Sangalang 5, Olivario 3, Catapusan 3, Hernandez 2, Paraiso 2, Ramos 0, Hanapi 0.
Quarters: 27-11, 51-30, 75-62, 104-85.
Second Game
San Miguel 107 – Perez 18, Lassiter 15, Miller 14, Trollano 14, Cahilig 12, Tiongson 8, Fajardo 8, Cruz 8, Enciso 5, Ross 3, Brondial 2, Tautuaa 0.
Phoenix 104 – Smith 37, Tio 23, Perkins 21, Tuffin 7, Rivero 4, Jazul 4, Garcia 3, Manganti 3, Ballungay 2, Verano 0, Ular 0, Alejandro 0, Camacho 0.
Quarters: 28-29, 54-49, 71-80, 107-104.
– Rappler.com