WATCH: June Mar Fajardo injures left hand after block on Rain or Shine rookie!
San Miguel overcame a slow start and defeated Rain or Shine, 115-110, Wednesday night in the PBA Season 48 Commissioner’s Cup at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Despite trailing by 13 points, the Beermen managed to stage a comeback, even with Gian Mamuyac’s impressive 33-point performance for the Elasto Painters.
San Miguel’s import, Ivan Aska, led the team in scoring with 28 points, but it was Marcio Lassiter who had the biggest impact. Lassiter scored 13 of his 23 points in the second half, helping the team turn the game around against the Yeng Guiao-mentored squad.
CJ Perez contributed 17 points, while June Mar Fajardo added 16 markers.
“I just gotta thank my teammates. My teammates found me tonight,” said Lassiter. “It just didn’t go in the first half, but once I found the rhythm I kept going after that.”
The Elasto Painters got off to a strong start, taking a 32-21 lead thanks to Mamuyac’s impressive 13-point outburst.
However, San Miguel fought back in the second quarter and made it a more exciting game, going on a 9-0 scoring run to tie the game at 53-all by halftime.
The third period was a close battle between both teams, but San Miguel took the lead at the beginning of the fourth quarter with Aska scoring six consecutive points for a 91-86 advantage.