Fajardo dominates as San Miguel Beermen drub Meralco

MANILA, Philippines – June Mar Fajardo’s dominance came to the fore again as the San Miguel Beermen drubbed the Meralco Bolts, 88-77, on Friday, November 28 in the 2014 PBA Philippine Cup at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.

This is San Miguel’s eighth win against just one defeat, which places them in a tie with the Alaska Aces for first place in the team standings. Should SMB finish the elimination round as one of the top two teams, it will automatically advance to the conference semifinals and play the waiting game as eighth teams battle it out in the knockout phase.

Not surprisingly, Fajardo dominated the undersized Bolts, who missed the services of starting big man Reynel Hugnatan, by scoring 21 points on top of 11 rebounds, while shooting 6/11 from the field. 

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Meralco actually started the game well, leading, 24-22, after the first quarter, but the Beermen righted the ship in the second period, outscoring the Bolts, 22-10, to permanently take the initiative. Coach Leo Austria’s wards led by around double-digits the rest of the way.

On the other hand, coach Norman Black’s squad fell to 4-6. They will almost certainly advance to the next round having to overcome a twice-to-beat disadvantage. The Bolts actually outscored San Miguel in the paint, 40-34, but this was offset by the fact that they were outrebounded, 45-49, and shot just 52% from the line and 13% from beyond the arc. 

Fajardo got a lot of help in this one, as rookie wingman Ronald Pascual unloaded 15 points on the strength of three triples while also hauling down 8 boards. Former MVP Arwind Santos also did well, tallying 15 markers, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists, while Ronald Tubid added 10 points off the bench.

As for Meralco, Cliff Hodge impressed with 19 points on 9/12 FG shooting, while Jared Dillinger tossed in 13 points. Point guard play was a big issue for Meralco as Simon Atkins played just 3 minutes and Mike Cortez shot 2/10 from the floor. 

Scores 

San Miguel 88 – Fajardo 21, Pascual 15, Santos 15, Tubid 10, Mercado 8, Kramer 5, Lutz 4, Maierhofer 4, Omolon 4, Ross 2, Fortuna 0

Meralco 77 – Hodge 19, Dillinger 13, Ildefonso 9, David 8, Macapagal 8, Anthony 7, Cortez 5, Buenafe 3, Wilsom 2, Sena 2, Ferriols 1, Atkins 0

Quarter Scores: 22-24, 44-34, 72-59, 88-77

– Rappler.com