BEERMEN LOOKING AT IMPOSING 3-GAME BUBBLE

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Talk ‘N Text has until 7 Tuesday night to figure out ways to deal with June Mar Fajardo and Alex Cabagnot before San Miguel Beer turns into the Grinch and steals Christmas in Game 4.

After blowing away the Tropang Texters in Game 1 and weathering a furious defensive assault in Game 2, the Beermen gun for an imposing 3-0 lead in their PBA Philippine Cup semifinal series at the Mall of Asia Arena.

No PBA team has come back from a 3-game deficit to win a best-of-7 and the Texters won’t be anxious to tempt fate against a powerhouse team seemingly impervious to whatever is thrown at them.

SMB easily erased a 27-20 first quarter disadvantage in the opener on Dec. 19 by unleashing a 33-9 counter-strike in the second period on the way to a breakaway 109-86 victory, with Fajardo scoring 23 points, mostly on single coverage, and Arwind Santos adding 21.

Cabagnot “debuted” for the Beermen after the pre-semis trade with GlobalPort for Sol Mercado and soaked in the feeling by setting up teammates for 6 assists and 13 points.

SMB was never in trouble after the first quarter, building a 33-point spread late in the game which it dominated in almost all departments: rebounding (56-39), turnover points (19-5), inside scoring (38-26) and fast break points (9-6).

Lessons learned, TNT put the blowout loss behind and devised a defensive dragnet geared at stopping the 6-foot-10 Fajardo from wreaking havoc inside in Game 2.

The double- and at times triple-teaming defense did wonders for the Texters who swarmed over Fajardo every time he made his move at the paint, forcing him to go 2 of 11 from the field and blurring the passing lanes with frenzied arm-waving.

But TNT paid the price for dispatching extra men on its target as Cabagnot, emboldened by the frequent open looks, unloaded a team-high 21 points with 3 3-pointers. Marcio Lassiter buried 2 more treys in the fourth quarter when the Texters were fighting back and Ronald Tubid also had a big one as the Beermen wrangled away from a 71-all tie.

The SMB bench outscored its counterpart, 43-17, a telling post-game stat.

And Fajardo?

Effectively contained inside, the reigning MVP found solace on the free throw line where he made the most of 11 charities, hitting all of them as he finished with 15 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks and 3 turnovers.

Santos, MVP two years ago, was more of a ripple with 10 points and 7 rebounds. His silence, however, could be the lull before the storm that is Game 3.

So there lie TNT’s problems tonight: A reawakened Arwind Santos, a red-hot Alex Cabagnot, an irrepressible June Mar Fajardo and SMB’s all-star second team.

It didn’t help on Sunday that the Texters missed 22 of their 31 3-point attempts and 12 of their 24 free throws. Several key offensive players were also muzzled, with Ryan Reyes scoreless in 21 minutes as a starter, Larry Fonacier 2 of 8 in 39 minutes coming off the bench and rookie Kevin Alas only one attempt in 15 minutes.

TNT could continue to invite Fajardo to make his presence felt from the foul line, but the defense needs to take the ball away from Cabagnot’s hands, especially with the shot clocking winding down. It’s also imperative for the Texters bench to come out of its trance if Christmas presents, not brooms, are to be exchanged on Thursday. (WJRHT)

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