MANILA, July 2 — San Miguel finished off TNT in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals, and the team did it in style.
The Beermen preserved a hot start and mauled the KaTropa, 115-91, in Game 6 of the best-of-seven championship series at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City on Sunday night.
SMB dropped 37 points in the first quarter while limiting TNT to only 16 points in the second as SMB opened a 62-42 lead at halftime.
The lead continued to swell and eventually stretched to as high as 28 points, 94-66, late in the third quarter as the Beermen retained control of the game.
The KaTropa tried to put up a fight, scoring nine straight points to come to within 19, 75-94, with 10:43 left, but the Beermen took advantage of the KaTropa’s missed opportunities to come closer and upped the lead to 29, 113-84, with less than two minutes remaining.
Charles Rhodes led SMB, which won its 24th title in the league, with 30 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, four blocks, and two steals, while Marcio added 24 points, five rebounds, four assists, and one steal.
Alex Cabagnot chipped in 19 points, 12 rebounds, and 11 assists for SMB, becoming the first local to tally a triple-double in a Finals game since Willie Miller accomplished the feat in 2005.
Troy Rosario led TNT with 21 points and five rebounds in a game where Coach Nash Racela decided to sit out import Joshua Smith in the fourth quarter.
The Beermen now have a chance to complete a season treble, more popularly known as a grand slam, in the season-ending Governors’ Cup starting July 19.
Should the team win it all, SMB, which completed a season sweep in 1989, will become only the second team to achieve a grand slam more than once or the first since Crispa got its second treble in 1983.
Box Scores: San Miguel 115-Rhodes 30, Lassiter 24, Cabagnot 19, Santos 17, Ross 14, Espinas 5, Semerad 4, Fajardo 2, De Ocampo 0, Heruela 0, McCarthy 0, Van Opstal 0, Agovida 0 TNT 91-Rosario 21, Pogoy 16, Smith 15, Castro 13, De Ocampo 7, Garcia 7, Williams 4, Tautuaa 4, Rosales 2, Semerad 2, Reyes 0 Quarterscores: 37-26, 62-42, 94-69, 115-91 (Ivan Saldajeno/PNA)
