Beermen back on winning track, trip Energy Boosters

Barako Bull Energy Drink is no pushover, after all. San Miguel Beer was given a dose of this reality Friday night when the Beermen needed a big fourth-quarter run before putting away the Energy Boosters, 94-81, in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum. Their five-game winning streak snapped by the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters the last time out, 110-107, the Beermen found themselves pushed to the limit by a game Energy Boosters side. Trailing 67-68 with 11:31 remaining, San Miguel flexed its muscle and unloaded a 14-2 run in the next four minutes to finally gain full control and zoom ahead, 81-70. The Beermen were never seriously threatened from that point, coasting to their seventh win in nine matches for the solo lead. Arwind Santos paced San Miguel with another double-double, finishing with 19 points and 10 rebounds, but the big boost came from an old reliable who hasn’t been utilized lately — Danny Seigle. Seigle came off the bench and scored a conference-high 17 points with four rebounds. "Ni-remind ko sila na hindi puwede yung lalamang kami tapos biglang magre-relax. Buti na lang nakapag-adjust kami sa pick-and-roll nila kasi dun kami nawala eh and ‘yun yung pumatay sa amin. Buti na lang nung fourth quarter naglaro na kami ng depensa,’’ said San Miguel head coach Ato Agustin. ‘’He (Seigle) wants to prove something, na pwede pa siya and kaya pa niya. It’s a good thing he stepped up and played a good game,’’ said Agustin of his veteran forward. San Miguel was off to a jackrabbit start as it quickly established a 14-point lead, 18-4, but Barako Bull quickly bounced back and set up an exciting match all the way till the early part of the final period. The Energy Boosters dropped their third straight game and fell to the bottom at 2-6. Mark Isip led Barako Bull with his game-high 22 points and four rebounds. Sunday Salvacion had 17 markers and four boards. - RCJ, GMANews.TV