San Miguel crushes GlobalPort, picks up first win

Behind season-high numbers, reigning two-conference champion San Miguel Beer crushed Globalport, 120-109, for a first win in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum Friday night.

Tyler Wilkerson erupted for 52 points and the Beermen sizzled with 19 three-pointers – both season best – as they bounced back strong from a 96-102 upset by the Mahindra Enforcers in a road game in Binan, Laguna on Feb. 20.

The Beermen handed the Batang Pier a second loss against two wins.

Wilkerson scattered 49 points in the first three quarters and added a three-point play before fouling out with less than two minutes left to play. It was the largest output by anybody in the season, surpassing Al Thornton’s first game with NLEX in the mid-season tourney.

The SMB import along with Marcio Lassiter, Alex Cabagnot and Chris Ross rained down 19 three-pointers on the Batang Pier to highlight their first win since their Philippine Cup title conquest.

Lassiter had eight, Wilkerson seven, Cabagnot three and Ross one as the Beermen matched the second most three-pointers in a game by the franchise.

Arwind Santos sat out the game due to an injury.

Wilkerson had had seven treys in the first three quarters. He beat the buzzer with a step-back three-pointer off two defenders as the Beermen carried a 93-86 lead over into the final period.

From a 55-54 edge, Wilkerson and Chris Ross teamed up in a 12-4 closing attack giving the Beermen a 67-58 lead at the half.

The Batang Pier, however, waged a counterattack midway through the third period, grabbing the lead at 80-79.

The Beermen took the first quarter at 34-23 before the Batang Pier also hit their strides, charging to within one at 51-52.

The two teams marked the second quarter with a fierce shootout from afar with Wilkerson, Ross and Cabagnot combining for five treys against the same number of triples by Pringle, Romeo and Jay Washington.

Wilkerson and Lassiter combined for an amazing 7-of-9 three-pointers in the opening quarter.

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