Photo: PBA Images

By James Ajero

San Miguel Beermen wrested back control of the series with a 115–109 victory over Barangay Ginebra San Miguel on Wednesday in the semifinals of the PBA50 Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Beermen took firm command in the third quarter, pulling away after a Chris Ross three-pointer at the 10:19 mark stretched their lead to 65–51.

From there, San Miguel consistently turned back Ginebra’s comeback attempts, even as Jeremiah Gray caught fire from deep to trim the deficit to eight later in the period.

The Gin Kings briefly put a scare into the Beermen with a furious 10-point burst, capped by an RJ Abarrientos three-pointer that pulled Ginebra within 111–109 with 13 seconds left.

CJ Perez nearly let the game slip away after missing both free throws from an intentional foul, giving Ginebra a late opening. But Chris Ross saved the Beermen with a huge offensive rebound that led to June Mar Fajardo calmly sinking his free throws to restore order.

On the final possession, San Miguel then locked in defensively, forced a turnover, and saw Marcio Lassiter ice the game at the line to grab a 3–2 series lead.

Nine-time MVP June Mar Fajardo rediscovered his form, coming off the bench to post a strong 21-point, 11-rebound double-double. Perez and Mo Tautuaa added 20 and 18 points, respectively, while Lassiter contributed 16 markers in the Beermen’s balanced attack.

—JMS, Alta Sports