Game on Tuesday (Nimibutr Stadium, Thailand)
8 p.m. – (Manila time) Sports Rev Thailand vs San Miguel Beermen
MANILA, Philippines -Stung by their shocking loss two days before, San Miguel Beermen charged back mightily and routed Thailand Slammers, 91-60, to draw level in their Asean Basketball League best-of-five semifinal series yesterday at PhilSports Arena.
Playing with a sense of urgency and high intensity, the Beermen blew the Slammers away with a stingy defense, limiting Thailand import Christien Charles’ production, and complemented this with a 51 percent marksmanship to make up for their sorry 60-62 loss in Thursday’s opener.
“It’s a complete turnaround (from the previous game),†said SMB coach Leo Austria, who previously described that setback as their “most embarrassing moment,†having stopped their record 16-game rampage.
“The intensity was very high today, unlike in the last game. It seemed they were riding high on that winning streak. You can see in today’s game they wanted to win, their desire was there,†added Austria, whose wards posted the second largest winning margin in the ABL playoffs, beating the 34-point rout of Malaysia by SMB in 2010 and Phl Patriots in 2012.
The Beermen pulled away from a tight, physical contest with an 8-1 blast to seize a 22-13 lead at the end of the first. They relentlessly pounded on the Slammers and widened the gap to 18 at the turn and by late in the game, the Beermen were up by 35 at 91-56.
Austria said it was helpful they limited their turnovers to 17 from a harrowing 25 in Game 1.
At the same time, he said their defense clicked, holding down Thailand to a 37 percent clip, and made life miserable for Charles (nine points from 24 the other night) and point guard Froilan Baguion (seven points, four assists).