San Miguel flexed its muscles in the second quarter and turned a close game into a rout but needed to hold off Magnolia’s last-ditch rally before preserving a 103-95 win at the start of their Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner’s Cup at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The Beermen threatened to put away the Hotshots early, unloading 41 second-quarter points with import Bennie Boatwright scoring 13 of the team’s output.
Marcio Lassiter made all his second-quarter field goals and contributed eight in that quarter alone as he and Boatwright led the Beermen’s early rampage.
San Miguel hit an amazing 61.1 percent shooting (11-of-18) in the second period, while holding Magnolia to just 33.3 percent (7-of-21) from the field.
The Hotshots, the tournament’s No.1 defensive team, just couldn’t keep up as the Beermen’s firepower was simply too much to handle.
Magnolia made a last-ditch effort to launch a comeback with under four minutes in the game as it chopped down San Miguel’s 20-point lead, 94-74, with 6:39 left, to as little as five, 100-95, heading to the final minute.
Boatwright led the way with 28 points and 16 rebounds followed by CJ Perez with 19.
“Magnolia showed they can compete, so we have to be composed in the next game,” Perez said.
