With 6:50 remaining in the San Miguel Beermen’s rematch against the NLEX Road Warriors, Marcio Lassiter drained a pivotal three-pointer off an assist from Jericho Cruz, extending his team’s lead to 105-100. 

It was the fourth three-pointer of the night for the 10-time PBA champion and a crucial one for the Beermen, who went on to take a 119-114 win that avenged their loss to this same Road Warriors team less than two weeks ago. 

However, the significance of this shot went beyond the game—it propelled Lassiter into second place on the league’s all-time three-pointers made list. Lassiter, now with 1,243 career threes, surpassed former San Miguel guard Allan Caidic’s count of 1,242. He is now just seven three-pointers away from surpassing the record held by Jimmy Alapag who retired from the PBA back in 2016.

With five games remaining for the Beermen in the elimination round of this 2024 PBA Governor’s Cup, it is more likely than not that he will break the record in these next few days before the postseason even begins. 

The fourth overall pick of the 2011 PBA Draft remains a high level contributor for the Beermen, even at this advanced age, and he finished this memorable night with 17 points on six-of-nine field goal shooting–including four-of-seven on three-pointers–six rebounds, two assists, and a steal in 35 minutes. Once he does break Alapag’s record, he should continue adding to his career totals and further pad his lead in the history books as it looks like his career is still far from over.

Aside from the personal significance to Lassiter, this game also marked San Miguel’s second consecutive win which improved their record in this Governor’s Cup to 4-2. Seven different players scored at least 10 points for them in this win, highlighting the potential of this when fully healthy. After a slow start, the Beermen have rounded into form and once again look like one of the favorites to win it all. 

San Miguel has actually not been as successful in recent editions of the Governor’s Cup, as they did win the PBA Commissioner’s Cup earlier this year, but they have not won the championship in this particular conference since 2015. 

With Lassiter still producing at a high level alongside his longtime teammates June Mar Fajardo and Chris Ross, the Beermen have a strong chance to finally end this drought, making this historic conference even more special for their longtime sharpshooter.