San Miguel drops its ABL debut in OT versus Westsports Dragons

Tiras Wade nailed two free throws with 22 seconds left in regulation, and the Westsports Malaysia Dragons dominated the extra period, 10-4, en route to spoiling the Asean Basketball League debut of the San Miguel Beermen, 83-77 Sunday at the MABA Stadium in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The 1:39 mark of the fourth quarter saw the Beermen nurse a slight advantage, 73-69, thanks to charities by Darlon Johnson, but Nic Belasco, a former San Miguel player in the PBA, scored off a missed Dragons triple to slice their deficit in half, leading up to the Wade charities that sent the game into overtime at 73-all. Then in the extra period, Brian Williams and Belasco wasted no time in scoring two quick baskets, making it 77-73 with less than a minute gone by. On the other side of the court, the Beermen struggled to connect on their shots, as they went 1 for 7 on field goals to close out the match. Wade led all scorers with 28 points. Fellow import Brian Williams added 26, as well as 23 rebounds, as the two combined for more than 60 percent of their team's scoring output. Belasco tallied six points and six boards in 35 minutes in his debut as a Westsports Dragon. The KL squad's coach is Ariel Vanguardia, who last coached the JRU Heavy Bombers in the NCAA. The Beermen actually led at the half, 42-35, and managed to push that advantage into double digits a minute and a half into the third, courtesy of a triple by Richard Jeter, but the team could not sustain the big lead. A Wade bucket at the 8:05 mark of the third broke the Dragons' second half silence and also ignited a 21-5 run that turned the tables on San Miguel, putting Westsports Malaysia up 56-50, 2:44 before the fourth canto. Down but not out, a steal by former NCAA MVP Kelvin Dela Pena led to a score by the 6'9" Junemar Fajardo, out of the University of Cebu, 57-56 for San Miguel. However they could not build off that play, as Adamson University graduate Patrick Cabahug buried a trey for the Dragons, sending them into the fourth with the lead. Five fourth quarter points by Benedict Fernandez swung things back in favor of San Miguel, but they went the last three and a half minutes without a field goal, including a miss by Froilan Baguion with seconds remaining in regulation that could have won the game for them. Johnson and Richard Jeter paced the Beermen with 17 and 11 points, respectively. Fernandez added eight markers, as did Fajardo, who also had seven boards and two swats. Extra effort was the story all day for Westports, as they claimed a 49-34 advantage on the glass, and a 26-10 edge in free throws. San Miguel also turned the ball over five more times. -- AMD/OMG/KG, GMA News The scores: Westports Malaysia Dragons 83 - Wade 28, Williams 26, Pacana 7, Belasco 6, Kuppusamy 5, Loh 4, Cabahug 4, Batumalai 3, Chee 0 San Miguel Beermen 77 - Johnson 17, Jeter 11, Fernandez 8, Fajardo 8, Cabatu 6, De La Pena 6, Baguion 6, Avenido 6, Rizada 5, Basco 4, Luanzon 0 Quarter scores: 23-25, 35-42, 59-57, 73-73, 83-77