- With the PBA Philippine Cup Finals best-of-seven series at 3-2, San Miguel Beermen is looking to close out while the TNT Tropang 5G fight to live another day in Game 6.
July 25, Friday – PhilSports Arena
- 7:30pm – San Miguel Beermen vs TNT Tropang 5G
Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser during Game 5 of the PBA Philippine CUp Finals between TNT Tropang 5G and San Miguel Beermen. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
The PBA Philippine Cup Finals shifts on Friday to Philsports Arena in Pasig City where San Miguel Beer will get a second chance at finishing off TNT.
A second straight win over the Beermen, on the other hand, is what the Tropang 5G are aiming for in the 7:30 p.m. contest, a shot they gained after the series was extended two nights earlier with a win carved out by a walking-wounded roster that left everything on the floor.
TNT took an 86-78 victory at Smart Araneta Coliseum that kept its Grand Slam hopes alive following three successive defeats that appeared like an assurance that a title was all but a formality for San Miguel.
San Miguel Beermen’s Jericho Cruz during the PBA Philippine Cup Finals against TNT Tropang 5G. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines–A lot of words and terms have become synonymous with the name Jericho Cruz.
“PBA champion” is one of them. “San Miguel guard” is another, and so is “Adamson product.” But over the past few days, the word that resonates most with Cruz is “angas.”
“Angas,” loosely translated to “arrogance” or “boastfulness,” might have a negative connotation to some, but inside the basketball court, every team needs someone who plays with that kind of flair.
“Hindi kumpleto ‘yong laro ko [‘pag walang angas],” Cruz told the Inquirer after San Miguel Beer’s Game 5 loss to TNT at Araneta Coliseum on Wednesday night.
Despite helping TNT to an authoritative Game 5 win in the PBA Philippine Cup Finals that had the Tropang 5G fanning their hopes of completing a Grand Slam, the veteran Kelly Williams was in no celebratory mood.
Fresh off of their 86-78 win over San Miguel Beer, Williams exited the Araneta Coliseum with a focused gaze in place of a joyous smile.
“We just have to play on Friday. That’s it,” Williams told the Inquirer straightforwardly. “We just have to play and see what happens.
“There’s nothing to celebrate. We’re down and we have to fight. That’s it.”
San Miguel Beermen during Game 5 of the PBA Philippine Cup Finals against TNT Tropang 5G. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines—San Miguel Beer veteran was almost unfazed with the conclusion of the PBA Philippine Cup Finals’ Game 5 at Araneta Coliseum on Wednesday night.
The Beermen fumbled their first chance to close out TNT as the Tropang Giga subdued San Miguel, 86-78, to stay alive in the best-of-seven affair.
But with a 3-2 advantage, San Miguel has two more chances to deny TNT of its Grand Slam bid.
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