San Miguel Beermen Basketball Updates

Photo Credit: PBA.ph

My prediction that the San Miguel Beermen will be able to reach at least the quarterfinals has come alive! They now have a new lease of life and will be coming in confident in a duel with sister team Barangay Ginebra Kings as the quarterfinals kick-off tonight at the Big Dome.

As I am saying again and again, being relegated to the wildcard phase was a blessing in disguise. We now have our confidence back and momentum is on our side as opposed to a possibly rusty Kings due to the holiday breaks.

The proverbial phoenix in Danny Seigle had also risen from his ashes as he started to bring back his A-game. Wait until the Dynamite explodes and wallop the whole Ginebra squad…

And oh, the Demolition Man is not yet around. Wait till you see him on the hardcourt and the opposing teams will be in total trouble.

It’s true that the San Miguel Beermen has a tremendous edge in manpower with a depleted Ginebra squad. Hopefully, they use this advantage to crash them more without being overconfident.

I love to predict especially now that we have started to win games. And for this series, I pick the Beermen to win it.

Sports journalist Noli Cortez of Malaya Online Edition (malayaonline.com.ph) tells us more of the quarterfinals match up between these two teams.

Beermen ready against Kings
Tuesday, January 06, 2009

San Miguel Beer failed to live up to expectations in the eliminations of the KFC PBA Philippine Cup. That explains why the Beermen are out to recover lost ground.

The Beermen claimed the last quarterfinals seat with a 105-86 rout of the Air21 Express last Sunday at the Araneta Coliseum, a victory that coach Siot Tanquingcen proved his team is now playing to its true potential.

Before that win, the Beermen also drubbed the Coca-Cola Tigers 99-89 at the start of the knockout wildcard round.

The Beermen advanced against sister team Ginebra in the best-of-three quarterfinals starting tomorrow. Clashing in the other quarterfinals match-up are Sta. Lucia Realty and Rain or Shine.

Tanquingcen said his team will be ready against the Kings. “Somehow, there’s a little bit more confidence in our team. Ang mga nadaanang hirap toughened us up.”

The Express went into the game bolstered by a 94-82 win over Purefoods but failed to essay that victory into a win over the Beermen, in the process absorbing their seventh straight defeat to San Miguel 2006.

Air21 became the fourth team booted out in the tournament formerly known as the All-Filipino after Red Bull, Purefoods and Coca-Cola. The Express are coming back in the Fiesta Conference playing under the Burger King banner.

Offense was no problem for SMB as the likes of Lordy Tugade, Dondon Hontiveros, Bonbon Custodio, Danny Seigle and Dorian Pena all scored in double figures and highlighted the team’s torrid 41-of-83 field shooting to the Express’ 28-of-91.

It was not shooting that Tanquingcen was worried, however. “When we came into this game, alam naming firepower ang main problem namin with Air21,” he related.

“We believe that if they’re at least not equal then they’re more talented than we are. Kapag nilabanan namin offensive-wise, malamang talo kami, kaya we came with a defensive-mindset.”

The Express managed to muster one run after another that enabled them to raze several 11-point deficits to within two, the last at 53-55, 8:06 left in the third quarter.

But Mick Pennisi and Hontiveros scored a triple each and Tugade completed a three-point play as SMB wrested full control the rest of the way.

“Great players make great plays,” said Tanquingcen. “Maganda ang naging laro namin because we were making shots. It made it a bit easier for me as a coach, pero ‘yung mga players ko ang nagpadali ng panalo namin.”

Tugade and Hontiveros rifled in 18 points each, Custodio and Seigle fired 16 apiece while Pena added 12 as the Beermen easily negated Gary David’s game-high 31-point explosion.

Arwind Santos and Don Allado were the only other Express who put in double-digit outputs, with the former making 20 and the latter 12.

Seigle already had 10 points with still five minutes left in the second period when he got hit by Santos’ wayward elbow, opening an inch-long cut on Seigle’s right cheekbone with his team ahead 41-31. The wound was taped up and he returned to action before getting more proper treatment after the game.

1. San Miguel Beermen Battle Purefoods Tender Juicy Giants as Semis Kick-off Today Photo Credit: PBA.PH Despite losing its first two assignments at the start of the eliminations, I was still confident that...
2. Danny Ildefonso Shines as San Miguel Beermen Defeats Barangay Ginebra, Wins 15th 3rd Place Title Photo Credit: PBA.PH Despite its heartbreaking loss to finalist Purefoods TJ Giants, the San Miguel Beermen managed to salvage a...