QUEZON CITY, Metro Manila — Brushing aside the odds laid out against them, the San Miguel Beermen used its vaunted offensive firepower to beat Talk ‘n’ Text (TNT) Tropang Giga and reset the series at one win apiece of their best-of-seven championship series in the 2022 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA)’s All-Filipino Conference at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Wednesday night via a 109-100 win.

Tropang Giga failed to shackle San Miguel Beer’s star guard Christian Jaymar ‘CJ’ Perez as the Beermen’s top gun scored 23 points even as teammate Vic Manuel stepped up to cover June Mar Fajardo’s performance slump and finish with 20 markers for his best offensive effort in the playoffs with his new team.

PBA insiders and TNT fans blamed Tropang Giga’s loss due to the absence of head coach Vincent ‘Chot’ Reyes who is currently with Gilas Pilipinas to fulfill his commitment to the national team and Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP).

But SMB’s supporters argued that it was the Beermen’s defense that held TNT’s Michael ‘Mikey’ Williams to only seven points after figuring in an injury scare early in the game.

“Nagpapasalamat kami sa Diyos na nanalo kami dahil kapag na-2-0 kami, mahirap na makabawi,” SMB coach Leo Austria enthused on the sidelines after his boys’ victory.

“Sinasabi ko sa kanila na lagi kaming lamang kapag third quarter pero nagre-relax kami, nawawala iyong killer instinct. Mabuti na lang ngayon, iyong pride nila as a player, nasundot ng konti dahil from start to finish, very close pero hindi sila bumitaw,” Austria added.

The scores:

San Miguel Beer (109) –
Perez 23, Manuel 20, Lassiter 19, Fajardo 13, Cruz 12, Tautuaa 11, Brondial 7, Ross 4, Enciso 0, Zamar 0.

Talk ‘n’ Text (100) –
Pogoy 28, Castro 15, Montalbo 14, Rosario 11, K. Williams 10, M. Williams 7, Erram 7, Reyes 3, Ganuelas-Rosser 3, Khobuntin 2, Marcelo 0.

Quarters: 30-28; 51-51; 82-79; 109-100.