Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — The Aces displayed vintage Alaska basketball on Sunday (January 17), and it couldn’t have come at a better time.
Alaska stormed back from a 12-point hole to outlast the San Miguel Beermen, 100-91, in Game 1 of their Smart Bro-PBA Philippine Cup finals.
Against the Beermen, who played without injured star June Mar Fajardo, Vic Manuel shone the brightest.
Manuel dropped 14 of his total output of 24 points in the fourth period to restore order for the Aces, who were facing a 12-point deficit in the opening minutes before shifting into high gear later in the said quarter.
But even without the hulking presence of the 6-10 Fajardo, the Beermen made things rough for the Aces especially in the first 40 minutes of the hard-fought contest.
“Kahit wala si June Mar, malakas pa rin ang San Miguel. Pinahirapan pa rin nila kami,” said Manuel moments after the rousing victory.
Indeed, the Beermen did just that as they forced the Aces to commit 13 turnovers in the first two quarters, which was very unlikely for a team whose bread and butter are defense and discipline.
“What really got me at halftime is we have 13 turnovers. We can’t really beat San Miguel Beer with that,” said Alaska coach Alex Compton.
The Beermen took a comfortable 12-point cushion and just when they thought they were on their way to clinching the victory, the Aces made an inspired comeback spearheaded by Manuel.
Alaska battered San Miguel Beer on all fronts from there, outscoring the defending champions 34-16 in the final frame in the process.
“I always love our team’s resilience. We make a lot of mistakes but they keep playing,” Compton said of his wards.
The Beermen, overall, looked as though they could live without Fajardo, but they definitely felt the gaping hole he left when the going got tough in the homestretch.
Yancy de Ocampo, though, did well in the absence of the reigning MVP, scattering 18 points to go with seven rebounds, three assists, and a steal.
Alex Cabagnot topscored for the Beermen with 20 points, while Marcio Lassiter added 19.
