Pasay: San Miguel preserved a hot start with an even more dominant finish to clobber TNT, 92-77, and clinch back-to-back PBA Philippine Cup championships in front of 14,201 fans at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay on Sunday. The Beermen raced to a 26-5 lead late in the first quarter, forcing the Tropang 5G to call three timeouts.
According to Philippines News Agency, San Miguel coach Leo Austria commented on the team's determination, stating, "It's obvious that the players didn't want to lose this game because they don't want another game on Wednesday." Despite a strong effort from TNT's Calvin Oftana, who managed to bring his team to a 68-66 lead late in the third period, San Miguel recovered and finished the game with a decisive 26-9 run.
This victory marks the Beermen's third all-Filipino title in four years, with all titles won against TNT. Overall, they secured their 12th Philippine Cup crown. Austria praised his team's resilience, saying, "Tonight's game is amazing for the players, because from start to finish, they really showed what's the character of the team. Although we had a good start and then TNT recovered, the composure of the players was really there, it didn't disappear because of experience, especially in this situation, the championship game."
June Mar Fajardo, who was questionable for the game due to a knee injury in Game 5, delivered an outstanding performance, finishing with a season-high 29 points, 23 rebounds, two assists, one block, and two steals. He matched TNT's scoring in the first quarter with 10 points, making his first five shots. Fajardo was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the championship series and received the new Finals MVP award, the Ramon Fernandez Trophy, which was personally handed to him by Fernandez.
Fajardo expressed his gratitude, stating, "I'm happy that I am the first ever recipient of the MVP trophy named after Don Ramon Fernandez. He is among those I look up to. It's an honor that the trophy is one of the highlights of this championship." Additional contributions came from CJ Perez, who added 19 points, four rebounds, seven assists, and one steal, while Rodney Brondial chipped in 15 points, 13 rebounds, one assist, and one steal. On the TNT side, Oftana finished with 28 points, seven rebounds, and five assists.
