By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
And that is why, June Mar Fajardo is the only person in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) to win eight Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards.
Talking about value, Fajardo just showed why he is the franchise player of the San Miguel Beermen squad after burying the buzzer-beating jumper over the Rain or Shine Elastopainters, 113-112, in the ongoing PBA Governor’s Cup on September 5, 2024, at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
With only three seconds remaining and San Miguel in deep trouble after trailing by a point, 111-112, all eyes were on their last play as they needed to rush the possession due to lack of timeouts.
Jordan Adams decided to inbound the ball.
CJ Perez received the leather.
With nowhere to go, Perez scanned his options inside the hardwood.
However, instead of hoisting a hail mary heave, Perez located Fajardo who was demanding the ball from the right side of the court.
After .9 seconds milked, Fajardo was able to gather the ball, plant his feet, and shoot the perimeter jumper that was clearly released before the official game clock expired.
With 0.7 seconds left, everyone’s focus shifted to the ball, and in PBA analyst Carlo Pamintuan’s words: “CJ, to June Mar, for the win!”
What a moment that was for Fajardo and the Beermen, escaping a feisty Rain or Shine team that was bound for another win if not only for that buzzer-beater heartbreak.
Before the game-winner happened, Rain or Shine had their moment in the game after rookie guard Felix Lemetti pulled off a veteran fishing exhibition, drawing a foul from the four-point line against Chris Ross of SMB.
Embracing the moment in the bright lights of the last scheduled game of the PBA doubleheader, Lemetti sank all shots from the charity stripe that gave them the one-point lead.
However, Fajardo’s cold-blooded clutch genes snatched the spotlight away from Rain or Shine, running away with a huge momentum-boosting victory that snapped its two-game losing streak in the import-laced conference.
Fajardo was nothing but spectacular in the game, finishing with another dominant double-double outing of 27 points and 21 rebounds.
SMB’s reinforcement, Adams, was also a beast after the three-point assassin dropped a game-high 41 markers alongside six rebounds and five assists.
“Kailangan namin yung panalo na to eh, kasi pag natalo kami, 2-3, medyo mahirap na yun para sa amin,” said Fajardo after SMB’s crucial win.
