PBA: George King seals San Miguel's 20-point comeback vs. NLEX

George King put the punctuation to San Miguel's 135-133 come-from-behind win over first-round tormentor NLEX in the PBA Season 50 Governors' Cup on Wednesday at the Ynares Center Antipolo.

The American import attacked the basket and challenged Tony Semerad's defense with a driving layup. Although the shot initially bounced out, a goaltending violation was called against the Road Warriors, giving the Beermen a 135-133 lead with just 5.2 seconds remaining.

NLEX had one last chance to steal the win, but LJay Gonzales' corner triple missed the mark as San Miguel completed its comeback from 20 points down.

King finished with 27 points, nine rebounds, four blocks, and three assists while June Mar Fajardo was also solid with 26 markers, 10 boards, and five assists on the same night he made the league's 10,000-point club.

Marcio Lassiter chipped in 19 points while Don Trollano dropped 17 in during their fourth-quarter rampage to finish with 23 points, 10 rebounds, and three assists off the bench as the playoff-bound San Miguel ended the elimination with a 9-3 card.

"Before the start of the game, what I've told to the team is let us play to win," San Miguel head coach Leo Austria.

"Even though we know that this game is just for positioning, what we want to develop is the killer instinct that we have been having since the first time we won a championship."

After a tight opening frame, San Miguel found itself drowning in a 20-point hole after Schonny Winston sent NLEX into a huge 116-96 lead early in the fourth.

However, Trollano and the rest of the Beermen caught fire from deep. Trollano started it out with a four-point shot before Jerrick Ahanmisi and King each fired a long bomb of their own to pull the Beermen to within four, 127-131, in the final 2:47.

It was also Trollano who forced a 133-all deadlock with only 53 ticks to go.

King then secured the defensive rebound off a Robert Bolick miss before translating it into offense on the next play to win it for the Beermen, who avenged their 110-96 loss to NLEX in their previous meeting.

Scores:

San Miguel 135 – King 27, Fajardo 26, Trollano 23, Lassiter 19, Perez 14, Ross 8, Ahanmisi 8, Cruz 4, Tautuaa 4, Brondial 0.

NLEX 133 – Burton 43, Winston 20, Gonzales 20, Semerad 14, Bolick 13, Herndon 9, Valdez 6, Alas 6, Marcelo 2, Bahio 0, Gamboa 0, Nieto 0.

Quarters: 30-32, 60-68, 96-112, 135-133.

—JKC, GMA News