Beermen rue lack of poise, eye equalizer in Game 2

MANILA, Philippines – Alaska Milk enjoys the initiative with the burden of adjustment on San Miguel Beer as the raging Aces seek a follow-up on their stirring Game One triumph in the continuation of the PBA Philippine Cup best-of-seven finals at the Smart Araneta Coliseum Friday night.

The Beermen imposed their superior firepower in the first half Wednesday night but the Aces turned things around in the crunch with their desire, determination and defense, eking out an 88-82 win in overtime.

It could still be offense versus defense as Alaska and San Miguel square off in Game Two at 7 p.m.

The Aces have proven their 66-63 conquest of the Beermen in the elims was no fluke, overcoming a 22-point deficit in the first quarter with a hard-nosed defense that limited Junemar Fajardo and his teammates to 29 points in the final half.

San Miguel had dropped only one game in its last 11 outings in a dominant run highlighted by a four-game sweep of Talk n Text in the Final Four.

But the Aces tore off the Beermen’s cloak of invincibility with a king-sized effort leading to the biggest win by any team in a finals game in eight years or since Talk n Text battled back from 23 points down in a 95-87 victory over Alaska in Game Three of the 2007 Fiesta Cup Finals.

The Beermen didn’t know what hit them. Coach Leo Austria has just become more convinced they’re up for a tough fight versus Alaska.

“We had a good start as we even led by 22. Then I don’t know what happened to us,” said Austria.

“We committed 26 turnovers. How can you win with that,” Austria also said.

The SMB bench chieftain noted Fajardo getting winded at the finish, Alex Cabagnot unable to handle the Alaska press and Chris Lutz having a crucial mental lapse in the closing seconds of regulation play.

Austria said they have to keep their poise and composure if they’re to survive Alaska’s suffocating pressure defense.

The Beermen just can’t expect the Aces to change their ploy now.

In the off-season, Alaska had hired the services of an Australian coach to prepare the Aces for this particular kind of game. And the Aces continue to work on it in their camp that is off limits to everyone except themselves.

“We had a good game plan but failed to execute it because of Alaska’s tough defense. We had bad executions, failing to get the ball to Junemar,” said Austria.

Fajardo had limited touches in Game One, making only 14 points on 4-of-9 field goals and 6-of-8 free throws.

Austria also mentioned three players that were “missing links” in their game in the series opener.

He could be referring to guards Cabagnot and Chris Ross and gunner Marcio Lassiter who were held to a measly combined output of 11. Cabagnot and Lassiter average 13.0 and 10.31, respectively, in the tourney.

Also evident was Alaska’s balanced scoring effort with the starters making 27 and the reserves putting in 61.

Meanwhile, Chris Lutz, Fajardo, Arwind Santos and Ronald Pascual carried much of the load for the Beermen.

In Game Two and for the rest of the series, the key could well be which coach will press the right buttons and which team will play better the entire stretch of the game.