By REYNALD MAGALLON
Basking in the air of nostalgia, with the teams sporting their retro jerseys and the league playing another game inside the fabled Rizal Memorial Coliseum, San Miguel, the only remaining pioneer franchise left, displayed its old, dominant form.
June Mar Fajardo and CJ Perez steadied the ship as San Miguel Beer hacked out a 110-98 victory over Meralco in the PBA’s golden anniversary celebration during the Season 49 Philippine Cup, Wednesday April 9.
Perez and Fajardo combined for 57 points – nine of which they poured during a telling 12-4 run to finally shake off the Bolts – the same team that defeated them in last season’s all-Filipino finale.
Perez exploded for 29 points laced with five rebounds, four assists and two steals while Fajardo had 28 points, 10 rebounds and four assists as the Beermen join the Magnolia Hotshots as the early conference leaders with similar 2-0 slates.
Jeron Teng, finally enjoying extended minutes, added 11 off the bench while Rodney Brondial had nine points and nine rebounds.
SMB led by as many as 17 in the contest but Meralco made a huge run in the third sparked by back-to-back four pointers from rookies CJ Cansino and Kurt Reyson.
The Bolts cut the deficit toj ust two, 75-77, but it was also exactly when both Fajardo and Perez decided to take over and took turns in scoring for the Beermen.
Meanwhile in the opening game, Magnolia pulled away in the payoff period and took down Converge, 83-71, to go 2-0 in the all-Filipino conference.
The Hotshots rode on a pivotal 11-4 blitz in the fourth quarter to create the much-needed separation, establishing a double-digit advantage that they never relinquished until the final buzzer.
The twin towers of Magnolia led the way with Ian Sangalang muscling his way inside the paint for 18 points, nine rebounds and four assists, while frontcourt partner Zav Lucero also had 18 points to go with his five rebounds, two assists and two blocks.
Russel Escoto was also a surprise contributor, firing 11 points while Rome Dela Rosa also had nine points – including the booming triple that put the game to rest, 81-69, with 54 seconds left.
Magnolia was only holding on to a slim 67-62 advantage early in the payoff period before the team clamped down on the defensive end to fuel the massive run.
When the dust settled, the Hotshots had built a double-digit spread, 78-66 and then just fended off any effort to fight back from the FiberXers.
