MANILA, Philippines – Meralco put the clamps on San Miguel in the fourth quarter to stretch its win streak in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup by way of a 100-93 victory at the Candon City Arena in Ilocos Sur on Saturday, January 18.
Led by import Akil Mitchell, the Bolts contained the Beermen to just 13 fourth-quarter points en route to their third straight triumph as they hiked their record to 7-3 to force a four-way logjam at second place.
Meralco tied Converge, NorthPort, and guest team Eastern, further intensifying the battle for a top-two finish that comes with a twice-to-beat advantage in the quarterfinals.
Getting used to wearing a mask after he sustained a broken nose, Mitchell turned in 26 points, 16 rebounds, and 5 assists, including an and-one play to cap a 10-0 run that gave the Bolts a 96-89 lead.
San Miguel still held an 89-86 edge but got limited to just 4 points in the final five minutes, where it went 0-of-7 from the field and committed 5 turnovers.
Chris Newsome backed Mitchell with 20 points and 4 assists, while Chris Banchero chimed in 19 points for Meralco, which also secured its playoff seat.
Bong Quinto dished out a game-high 8 assists in the win to offset a rough shooting performance that saw him make just 1 of his 7 shots for a measly 2 points.
June Mar Fajardo delivered 20 points, 13 rebounds, and 4 assists to pace the Beermen, who fell to 4-5 to remain at eighth place.
It has been a rocky stretch for the usually dominant San Miguel as it stayed winless in the East Asia Super League and lost three of its last four games in the PBA.
That dry spell has prompted the Beermen to bring in their fourth import of the conference, acquiring Malik Pope.
Pope, who assumed the import spot previously held by Quincy Miller, Torren Jones, and Jabari Narcis, tallied 14 points and 9 rebounds in his PBA debut.
CJ Perez had 16 points in the losing effort and Don Trollano added 14 points.
The Scores
Meralco 100 – Mitchell 26, Newsome 20, Banchero 19, Reyson 7, Almazan 6, Cansino 6, Mendoza 4, Hodge 4, Rios 3, Torres 3, Quinto 2, Bates 0, Caram 0.
San Miguel 93 – Fajardo 20, Perez 16, Pope 14, Trollano 14, Tiongson 9,Tautuaa 8, Cruz 7, Rosales 5, Ross 0, Brondial 0, Teng 0, Lassiter 0.
Quarters: 26-18, 46-47, 80-80, 100-93.
– Rappler.com