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Mo Tautuaa leads San Miguel. PBA IMAGES
MANILA, Philippines – Defending champion San Miguel Beer returned to beat Meralco, 89-82, for his third consecutive victory in the PBA Philippine Cup at AUF Sports Arena & Cultural Center in Angeles, Pampanga.
The Beermen were up 13 points in the third quarter thanks to their hot outside shots in the final frame, where they scored five 3-pointers, including two straight by Alex Cabagnot and Chris Ross in the final three minutes.
Ross’ 3-pointer with 19.9 seconds to go secured San Miguel’s fourth win in six games.
“The coach told us to keep fighting, to keep fighting, to keep pushing until we got to the end,” said SMB big man Moala Tautuaa.
“We were so lucky in the fourth quarter that we were able to catch up because they know it’s time to win,” said coach Leo Austria.
Tautuaa led San Miguel with 23 points, while Arwind Santos had 17 points and 11 rebounds for his fifth double-double in six games.
Chris Newsome had 14 points, eight rebounds, six assists and two steals for the Bolts, who took a 67-54 lead with 53 tics remaining in the third period.
Meralco fell to 3-3 after coming off back-to-back victories.
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