A dominant performance especially on the defensive end from San Miguel Beermen help them grab a 78-57 win over JobStreet.com Singapore Slingers for their seventh straight win.
Chris Banchero was brilliant and led the charge for the Beermen as he scored 19 points. Leo Avenido scored a season-high 16 points while Justin Williams had a complete game on both sides of the floor with 14 points and 3 blocks for the Beermen who are now have a record of 10-3.
Still in the hunt for the final playoffs spot, the Slingers looked solid early on in the first quarter. Phillip Morrison sank a three-point shot with 2:19 left in the first quarter, giving the Slingers a 13-10 lead. However, the Beermen responded right away behind their Williams duo who scored six straight points to gave the Beermen a 16-13 lead. From there, the Beermen never looked back.
Late in the second quarter, Banchero showed everyone why he is the top candidate for this year’s best player in the league. He sets up Eric Menk for an open 16 footer shot in the corner. Then, he stole the ball from Phillip Morrison for an easy left hand lay-up which gave the Beermen a 36-22 lead with 53 seconds left before halftime.
Cabatu and Morrison was trying to keep the Slingers in the game. Cabatu’s floater and Morrison’ running shot kept the Slingers within single digit with 6:24 left in the third quarter. But, the Beermen held them to only four points for the rest of the third quarter.
A two-handed slam from J. Williams sparked a 11-2 run for the Beermen. This 11-2 run was capped off a turn around hook shot from Brian Williams and a pull up jumper from Banchero at the Buzzer as the Beermen ran off to a 57-37 lead after three quarters.
Down 20 points going into the final quarter, the Slingers were unable to find any answer to stop the Beermen offense. After suffering this loss, the Slingers are now on the fifth spot with a record of 5-10. Their big man Donald Singleton, who is averaging 14.8 points per game, was held to only 2 points in this game.
Rashad Jones-Jennings led the Slingers with 19 points and 15 rebounds, Phillip Morrison had his best game in a Slingers jersey with 17 points and Wong Wei Long added 11 points.
The Slingers will have a chance to redeem themselves against the Beermen as this two teams will battle it out again at Ynares Sports Arena, Philippines, next Saturday April 13th at 4PM HKT.
San Miguel Beermen: Banchero – 19, Avenido – 16, J. Williams – 14, Hubalde – 9, B. Williams – 6, Menk – 5, Taulava – 4, Rizada – 2, Cawaling – 2, Fortuna – 1.
JobStreet.com Singapore Slingers: Jennings – 19, Morrison – 17, Wong – 11, Cabatu – 8, Singleton – 2.
