By: Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The San Miguel Beermen are a win away from eliminating Rain or Shine and are looking to advance to a back-to-back finals appearance this year.
After a crazy win in their Game 2 clash, the Beermen showed the world why they were never the underdogs despite ranking seventh in the eliminations.
In back to back games, Rain or Shine buckled against the pressure as they again gave up a big lead and threw away the game.
Leading 44-15 in the second frame, it took only one quarter for the Beermen to cut the deficit to 3.
The Beermen blitzed to a massive 34-8 run to close the half and trim the lead, 52-49.
During the second half, Rain or Shine lost all momentum as SMB’s offense overwhelmed them. Chris Ross led the attack as he torched them from deep with a career-high 10 three-pointers.
SMB took the lead and eventually the game, crushing Rain or Shine, 117-105.
The veteran SMB team looked hungrier, diving for loose balls and competing on every possession.
Chris McCullough, who replaced Charles Rhodes as SMB’s import, seemed to fit in seamless with the team’s system despite his late arrival.
McCullough stood as SMB’s leader despite his short string with the team, and even admitting cursing his teammates during a timeout in their Game 1 victory.
“The guys, I was cursing at them, to be honest, but I was just trying to be a leader, get everybody up. We were down, we needed a couple stops to get back into the game,” said McCullough when asked toward his cursing incident with the team.
What McCullough did eventually work as SMB notched the win.
Game 3 showdown between the two will be today, 7 p.m. at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
