FALLING INTO PLACE
Against the backdrop of Marcio Lassiter’s record-breaking night, San Miguel Beer shredded Barangay Ginebra with methodical precision, 131-82, in a dominating showcase that should put the rest of the league on notice.
The Beermen bested the crowd-darlings—who were riding on a four-game winning streak—in nearly every statistical metric imaginable, while also dealing the decorated Tim Cone and the beloved franchise their worst beating in league history.
Chris Ross, one of the cornerstones of the dynastic Beermen, was surprised to learn that his crew actually set a franchise record for a blowout that night at Smart Araneta Coliseum, the same night his teammate Lassiter shattered Jimmy Alapag’s 1,250 career made triples.
“We don’t go into games knowing we’re doing that,” he said of league records as he shook his head. “We just go out there trying to get better every game, trying to play the right way.”
As Lassiter reset the league mark inside the first five minutes of the nightcap at the Big Dome, his teammates fed off his pace, scoring at will as the game plodded along.
Eight-time MVP June Mar Fajardo finished with 24 points and 17 rebounds, spitfire guard CJ Perez added 22 points and six assists, while Lassiter capped off his date with destiny with 18 points.
Terrence Romeo chipped in 14 points, while Don Trollano 11 as the rest of the locals chipped in on the blowout that had the Beermen going nearly 60 percent from the field and claiming a spot into the crossover quarterfinals.
So cutthroat was San Miguel on Sunday that import Jordan Adams—the first player this conference to drop 50 points and who nearly replicated the feat a few days later—hardly needed to score.
Numbers hardly matter
With two games left to play, the Beermen can further improve to 8-2 win-loss. But as Ross said, the numbers hardly matter at this point.
“We’re just trying to better ourselves as a team,” the skipper who also now serves as an assistant to Jorge Gallent said.
“We don’t look at wins and losses, but if we’re playing the right way. Today we played the right way. Everything just worked,” he added.
Up next for San Miguel is a Rain or Shine side eager to punch its ticket to the next round. The champion clubs squads battle this coming Thursday. The Beermen will then end their elimination round campaign against Blackwater on Saturday.
