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Manila Bulletin devider Sports devider Basketball devider Beermen aim to preserve lead; TNT, Meralco eye quarters incentive

Beermen aim to preserve lead; TNT, Meralco eye quarters incentive

Published Dec 18, 2025 02:34 pm

At A Glance

  • Red-hot San Miguel aims to keep its strong grip on the No. 1 spot, while TNT and Meralco seek to strengthen their bid for quarterfinal incentive in the PBA Season 50 Philippine Cup at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila Friday, Dec. 19
(PBA Images)
(PBA Images)
Red-hot San Miguel aims to keep its strong grip on the No. 1 spot, while TNT and Meralco seek to strengthen their bid for quarterfinal incentive in the PBA Season 50 Philippine Cup at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila Friday, Dec. 19
Riding an eight-game winning streak heading into their last elimination game, the Beermen (8-2) are looking to make it nine in a row when they battle the Bolts (6-4) in their 7:30 p.m. contest.
Kicking off the double-header is the match between the Tropang 5G (6-3), who are shooting for back-to-back victories against the Blackwater Bossing (1-9) at 5:15 p.m.
After Rain or Shine fell short to Barangay Ginebra with an 82-80 result in their overseas game at the Khalifa Sports City Stadium in Bahrain, San Miguel stole the pole position which it hopes to preserve come the quarterfinals.
“Well it’s a welcome development for us [getting the quarters bonus], this is our goal since the start of the conference to get into the top four because of the incentives,” said San Miguel head coach Leo Austria.
“But right now ‘di pa namin alam kung sino pang makakalaban pero still we have to work hard kasi a lot of teams really hard to beat eh… you can’t relax eh,” he added.
CJ Perez and June Mar Fajardo powered the Beermen over the Terrafirma Dyip, 135-115, for their eighth consecutive victory after starting the conference flat with two straight defeats.
The two veterans, alongside Don Trollano, Jeric Teng, and Jericho Cruz, take charge against the determined Bolts who have rising star CJ Cansino leading the way with his continuous scoring outburst that helped stretch Meralco’s win to three.
Apart from Cansino, giving ample contribution for Meralco are Cliff Hodge, Chris Newsome and Bong Quinto as they target to break free from the three-way logjam and possibly jump to No. 4.
Meanwhile, TNT, spearheaded by Jordan Heading, Rey Nambatac, and Calvin Oftana, gun for a strong hold of theNo. 3 seat against the slumping Bossing side.
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