Alaska thumps SMB to force a Game 7

Carlo Pamintuan
Dondon Hontiveros of Alaska Aces fights for a loose ball against Chris Ross and Ronald Tubid of San Miguel Beermen during the PBA Philippine Cup Finals Game 6 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on 18 January 2015. (Czeasar Dacel/NPPA Images)

The Alaska Aces forced a winner-take-all match in the PBA Philippine Cup Finals with a dominant 87-76 Game 6 victory over the San Miguel Beermen, Sunday night at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.

With Dondon Hontiveros taking care of the scoring with 18 points, the Aces baited the Beermen to beat them from the outside. After getting early success from the long ball in the first quarter, SMB fell for the trap as they hoisted 36 three-point attempts in the basket, abandoning their main strength in June Mar Fajardo.

JVee Casio finally ended his slump as he scattered nine points in the game including a basket at the 3:41 mark of the fourth which gave the Aces their biggest lead of the series at 17 points, 83-66.

However, the Beermen refused to give up as Marcio Lassiter cut their deficit down to seven, 83-76, with still 1:27 left. Alaska missed on their next possession but they were able to grab the rebound. Sonny Thoss then put the game away with a baseline jumper for a nine-point lead with just 43 ticks left in the contest.

Going for the knockout punch, SMB relied heavily on its starters. With Alaska going small, SMb head coach Leo Austria tried to take advantage of the matchups by playing Arwind Santos and June Mar Fajardo heavy minutes in the first half. However, Alaska’s defense held strong and the Beermen’s bigs tired out.

Aside from Hontiveros, Alaska got most of its points from Cyrus Baguio with 13, Vic Manuel with 12, and Thoss with 10.

The Beermen were led by Santos who had another solid effort with 24 points and six rebounds. Lassiter added 19 markers for SMB but they were the only two in double-digits. Fajardo was limited to nine points on 2 of 7 shooting from the field although he did grab 13 rebounds.

For the third straight game, the Aces had a different starting lineup. A hot-shooting SMB crew took full advantage as they started the game with a 15-2 run after three free throws from Alex Cabagnot at the 6:05 mark.

The Aces settled down later in the quarter upon the entry of Calvin Abueva as they cut their deficit down to six at 23-17. However, The Beast committed three early fouls in the first 12 minutes of action.

Alaska continued its run to lead 24-23 after a basket from Vic Manuel at the 10:33 mark of the second. Even without Abueva, the Aces took control of the game as Hontiveros exploded for 10 points to allow his side to grab a 42-36 halftime lead.

Casio finally made his presence felt in the third quarter with two early dimes to his teammates. After a two-game drought, Casio finally scored at the 7:10 mark of the third to establish Alaska biggest lead at 14, 54-40.

With the Beermen resting their starters, they relied on six late points from Doug Kramer and Nelbert Omolon to get within seven at 63-56 heading into the payoff period.

The Main Man: Hontiveros scored 10 of his points in a crucial second quarter run for the Aces. They played small but hung on for the lead with Abueva on the bench because of the Cebuano’s hot shooting

Honorable Mentions: Casio and Thoss chipped in good numbers but, more importantly, they there to steady the ship for the Aces late in the game as their 17-point lead was reduced to seven.

Game Turning Point: Down by only seven points with still 1:27 left in the game, the Beermen gave the Aces multiple looks at the basket. Failing to get a crucial rebound and losing out on a jumpball, SMB gave Thoss a wide open baseline jumper for the dagger.

Stat of the Game: The Aces dominated the points in the paint 58-22 even if San Miguel Beer is the much bigger team. Their bench also outclassed SMB’s 53-14.

Next Game: Game 7 on Wednesday, January 21, at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum (7:00 pm)

He Said It:

Alaska head coach Alex Compton: The big thing for us was the minutes their main guys played. When you play against a team the way that we do, nakakapagod talaga yan. I’m really grateful that our players go as hard as they do. The guys committed on helping on June Mar and chasing the shooter. That’s the biggest thing.

The scores:

ALASKA 87 - Hontiveros 18, Thoss 13, Manuel 12, Baguio 10, Casio 9, Exciminiano 8, Dela Cruz 6, Abueva 5, Jazul 4, Banchero 2, Eman 0, dela Rosa 0, Menk 0.


SAN MIGUEL BEER 76 - Santos 24, Lassiter 19, Fajardo 9, Cabagnot 8, Kramer 5, Lutz 4, Tubid 3, Omolon 2, Semerad 2.

Quarter scores: 17-23, 42-36, 63-56, 87-76.

 

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