San Miguel dominates Game 6 to reclaim PBA throne, keeps TNT out of Grand Slam club

San Miguel shut the door on an opponent seeking history and reclaimed its place atop the PBA hierarchy. The Beermen ruled the season-ending Philippine Cup and kept TNT out of the elite Grand Slam club once again after a dominant 107-96 win in Game 6 of the best-of-seven finals at the PhilSports Arena on Friday, July 23. CJ Perez, June Mar Fajardo (210-C-1989), and Jericho Cruz (182-G-1990) took turns as San Miguel ended a three-conference title drought and captured a record-extending 30th championship, with 11 of those coming in the prestigious All-Filipino tiff. Perez bounced back from a measly 5-point outing in their Game 5 loss with a series-high 24 points, 6 assists, and 3 rebounds, while Fajardo turned in a near-perfect outing of 24 points on a 11-of-12 shooting to go with 12 rebounds. Cruz, who captured his first Finals MVP award, chimed in 13 points and 6 assists, sparking a big third quarter that broke the game wide open. The Tropang 5G were within striking distance, trailing 52-56 early in the third period before the Beermen unleashed a 24-8 run, with 9 points coming from Cruz, to mount a commanding 80-60 lead. History repeated itself as the Beermen prevented the Tropang 5G from achieving the rare Triple Crown, just like they did over a decade ago. Then known as the Talk ’N Text Tropang Texters, TNT won the first two championships of the 2010-2011 season only to lose to the Petron Blaze Boosters — now San Miguel — in seven games in the Governors’ Cup finals. It was another heartbreaking ending for the Tropang 5G, who missed out on joining Crispa (1976, 1983), San Miguel (1989), Alaska (1996), and San Mig Coffee (2013-2014) in Grand Slam company.
Courtesy of: rappler.com