MANILA, Philippines — June Mar Fajardo regained his dominant self after leading San Miguel Beer past Barangay Ginebra, 131-121 to send the series back to square one in their PBA Season 49 Governors’ Cup semifinals on Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The 6-foot-10 Fajardo had monster numbers of 29 points and 16 rebounds, while shooting a near flawless 12-of-15 from the floor in a dominant performance that earned him the Best Player of the game.
The eight-time league Most Valuable Player only had eight attempts in their 95-99 loss in Game 3.
But with the specter of going down 1-3 in the series with another defeat, the Cebuano star center played with a strong sense of urgency.
“I’m thankful to my teammates and to coach (Jorge Gallent). My teammates were looking for me, and they made those passes to me at the post. I’m just glad I was able to score,” Fajardo said after the game.
Fajardo also got big help from wingman CJ Perez and import EJ Anosike in the Beermen’s strong third quarter offense that saw them outscore the Gin Kings, 37-29 to finally take control.
San Miguel managed to dodge the bullet considering that Ginebra’s resident import Justin Brownlee dropped 49 points in trying to carry the Gin Kings on his broad shoulders.
Anosike finished with 27 and 11 rebounds, despite tweaking his ankle.
Perez had 20, six boards and seven assists, while Marcio Lassiter and Don Trollano added 15 each in a balanced scoring attack for the Beermen.
Stephen Holt scored 17 points, while Scottie Thompson added 15, four rebounds and eight assists for Ginebra, which will try to regain lost ground come Friday when Game 5 shifts back to the Ynares Center in Antipolo.
