Magnolia overcomes San Miguel to earn duel with Alaska

The two teams went back and forth in the first three quarters, before Magnolia seized the lead in the fourth en route to victory.

The Magnolia’s bench did a lot of damage, hitting 51 points to subdue the Beermen. The usually high scoring first five of San Miguel were still productive, but Alex Cabagnot and Chris Ross were limited to a shade under double figures with nine points each.

Hotshot Justin Mellon scores a 3.

Renaldo Balkman carried San Miguel with 31 big points off a high 59 percent clip, while June Mar Fajardo tallied 19 with 12 boards. Marcio Lassiter was the only other starter in double figures with 12, while Arwind Santos came off the bench for 13 more.

Wayne Chism posted 21 points to pace Magnolia, as Paul Lee and Mark Barroca scored 14 and 11 points, respectively. Coach Chito Victorlero’s bench, however, was the main difference, as Ian Sangaland and Rob Herndon combined for 24 points, while Jio Jalalon and Justin Melton conspired for 17 more.

With the win, the Hotshots now find themselves in a quarterfinals duel against Alaska, with the Aces having a twice to beat advantage. San Miguel, meanwhile, will clash with TNT in a best of three series. — LA, GMA News