| Bacolod City, Philippines | Thursday, June 18, 2009 |
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best-of-seven semis
Still deadly even an almost month-long hibernation, San Miguel Beermen dished out a 102-87 win last night against Burger King Whoppers to take Game 1 of their best-of-seven semifinals series in the 2009 Motolite PBA Fiesta Conference at the Araneta Coliseum. Despite missing the team’s last two games, Gabe Freeman, sauntered back into SMB’s lineup and led all scorers with 22 points. He also figured prominently in the third quarter as the Beermen doused any hope for Burger King to steal the game. It was a frustrating loss for the Whoppers, who kept the game close in the opening quarter but allowed the Beermen to seize control in the second due to turnovers and poor shooting. Notwithstanding the lopsided win, Tanquingcen said he expects the next game to be a lot tougher and more interesting. Game 2 of the series – a rematch of last season’s Fiesta Conference semis duel – is on Friday at the Cuneta Astrodome. Jay Washington scored 17, Dondon Hontiveros had 14, Danny Ildefonso added 10 and Mark Pingris grabbed 14 rebounds for the Beermen, who led by as many 22 points – 83-61 and 97-75 – in the fourth quarter. SMB led by just two points at the end of the first quarter but capitalized on Burger King’s nine turnovers and 4-of-21 (19 percent) shooting in the second period to stretch their lead to 45-37 at halftime. The Whoppers had 14 turnovers in the first 24 minutes and 23 for the game that netted the Beermen 24 points. A layup by Arwind Santos and a technical free throw by Gary David pulled Burger King within 40-49 early in the third quarter. But SMB answered with a 12-5 run as the Beermen that made the count 61-45. The Whoppers never got closer the 12 points after that. Sophomore JR Quinahan scored a career-high 17 points to show the way for Burger King and rookie Mark Yee added a second career-best 16 points. Shawn Daniels finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds but Burger King lead star – Arwind Santos and Gary David – were a letdown, combining for just 12 points on a combined 3-of-15 shooting.*pba.com
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