MANILA, Philippines -- The San Miguel Beermen gave Leo Austria a triumphant return as head coach, pulling away in the fourth quarter to blast the Terrafirma Dyip, 106-88, in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup action Friday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila.
In Austria’s first game back to the bench as head coach, San Miguel broke the game wide open in the fourth quarter as June Mar Fajardo dominated.
Torren Jones also had a winning debut in the PBA, going off for 24 points, 13 rebounds, three assists and a steal. Fajardo added monster numbers with 21 markers, 19 boards and seven dimes.
Terrafirma trailed by just four, 69-73, after a 3-pointer by Brandon Walton-Edwards.
But the Beermen handed the offensive keys to Fajardo and unleashed a 12-1 run capped by a Don Trollano layup to push the lead to 15, 85-70.
Louie Sangalang finally halted the run with a layup, but San Miguel just kept on coming.
The lead grew to 20, 94-74, after a Juami Tiongson triple with 5:46 remaining.
The Dyip tried to rally back, but the nearest they got to was 16 points.
The largest Beermen lead was 21 after a layup by CJ Perez, but Didat Hanapi dialed in a triple late to set the final score.
After the game, Austria voiced joy with winning his first game in the PBA once again.
“In the PBA, you cannot take anyone lightly. Lahat ng teams, competitive. You can never know what will happen,” Austria told reporters.
“Just like the Terrafirma, they played last against Meralco. They lost only in the last possession. That's why I'm so happy to be back and win my first after long years on the sidelines,” he added.
Austria, who was previously listed as the team’s active consultant, replaced Jorge Gallent as head coach. The two switched positions.
Perez added 16 markers for the Beermen, while Tiongson and Trollano had 12 and 10 respectively.
Walton-Edwards finished with 18 points and 18 rebounds for Terrafirma. Rookie Mark Nonoy (14), Vic Manuel (12), Sangalang and Stanley Pringle (11 each) also contributed to the Dyip's offense.
San Miguel is now at 2-2, while Terrafirma remained winless through five games.