PBA: Jones gets plenty of help as San Miguel Beer defeats GlobalPort

The San Miguel Beermen leaned on their steady sniping to defeat the GlobalPort Batang Pier, 109-92, Monday, at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum, in the on-going 2014 PBA Commissioner's Cup.

The Beermen improved to 5-1, behind just the two undefeated teams, Talk 'N Text at 6-0, and the San Mig Coffee Mixers, and their 3-0 card. The Batang Pier on the other hand lost for the sixth time in as many outings, as former Petron assistant turned GlobalPort head coach Pido Jarencio failed anew to break into the win column.

Import Kevin Jones led all scorers with 30 points, as he connected on 11-of-17 shots. He also hauled in 19 rebounds, while chipping in two assists, a steal, a block and no turnovers.

Five locals also finished in double-digits, led by Arwind Santos, who also completed a double-double, 18 points and 10 rebounds. Marcio Lassiter added 16, while Chris Ross dished out 11 dimes in addition to his 12 points. Center June Mar Fajardo logged 11 markers, six boards and four extra passes, while Sol Mercado came off the bench to score 10.

"There's no way we're near 100  percent," said San Miguel Beer consultant Todd Purves, who mentioned that Fajardo, Mercado and Chico Lanete were still being slowed down by injuries. "I still have guys who are hurt. I'm proud of the guys who're fighting through it."

SMB finished shooting 42-of-83 on field goals, or 50.6 percent. 29 of those 42 makes were assisted.

The Beermen abused GlobalPort's porous interior defense at the start of the game, as Fajardo, Ross and Santos found their way inside, 10-3. Evan Brock and former Petron Blaze Boosters/San Miguel Beerman Jay Washington had their moments, but Jones and Marcio found their range, 19-11.

In the final three minutes, rookie Terrence Romeo and Bonbon Custodio strung some points together for GlobalPort, but Chris Lutz and Jones were more than willing to sustain the SMB advantage. A pair of charities from Brock ended the period with the Beermen ahead, 26-20.

The GlobalPort import looked to seize the lead for his team in the second period, as his dunk, followed by a Kelly Nabong banker, cut the lead to two. Lutz and Doug Kramer played spoilers, though, while a Ross triple kept SMB ahead, 34-31.

Washington was able to trim the lead to two anew, but Jones caught fire late to re-establish a 44-36 edge. The 1-2 punch combo of RR Garcia and Alex Cabagnot, traded away from SMB between conferences, was enough to keep the Beermen lead from getting out of hand though, as GlobalPort headed into the halftime break down by only five, 47-42.
 

The rookie Romeo from FEU started to sizzle in the third, battling Fajardo in point production to cut his team's deficit to one, 59-58. But the Beermen had an answer for every GlobalPort run. A Sol Mercado three-point play capped off a 15-4 counterattack, before Mark Macapagal fed Brock for another dunk to end the period, 74-64.

Kramer and Jones bumped the lead up to 16 in the payoff period, 82-66, before GlobalPort tried to stage a comeback. RR Garcia conspired with Washington and Brock to trim the lead to seven, 89-82, halfway into the fourth, but Ross and Santos converted on key baskets to erect a 12-point lead with three and a half minutes remaining, 96-84. Batang Pier failed make one last push, and that handed the Beermen their 109-92 victory.

Jay Washington paced GlobalPort with 22 points, nine coming from beyond the arc. Import Evan Brock put up 20 points, 16 boards, five assists and two swats in 44 minutes, while former FEU Tamaraws RR Garcia and Terrence Romeo combined for 30 points, four triples and eight boards.

Despite a 17-14 advantage in offensive rebounds, SMB led in second-chance points 17-9. They also out-ran the Batang Pier, via a whopping 27-8 advantage in fast break points. - AMD, GMA News


The scores:

SAN MIGUEL BEER 109 - Jones 30, Santos 18, Lassiter 16, Ross 12, Fajardo 11, Mercado 10, Lutz 6, Kramer 5, Duncil 1, Marata 0, Tubid 0, Taha 0, Hubalde 0

GLOBALPORT 92 - Washington 22, Brock 20, Garcia 17, Romeo 13, Matias 8, Cabagnot 7, Nabong 3, Custodio 2, Hayes 0, Salva 0, Salvador 0, Macapagal 0

Quarter scoring: 26-20, 47-42, 74-64, 109-92