The Bay Area Dragons will take another shot at eliminating the San Miguel Beermen after failing to do so in Game 3, which the Beermen won last Sunday, 98-96. Will the Dragons get the job done this Wednesday? Or, will San Miguel force Game 5?
Catch this game live on Wednesday, December 21 at 5:45 pm, Manila time.
Bay Area Dragons (2-1)
Projected Starting Five:
- PG: Glen Yang
- SG: Kobey Lam
- SF: Songwei Zhu
- PF: Hayden Blankley
- C: Andrew Nicholson
Bay Area will once again look to finish the series this Wednesday. Remember, the Dragons have not lost two games in a row so far in the 2022-23 PBA Commissioner’s Cup, so that’s a good sign for their chances to put the final nail in the coffin of San Miguel’s hopes to win the conference title in Game 4. In Game 3, Bay Area got 34 points from Nicholson, who’s just been amazing in the series.
Nicholson poses a constant threat to San Miguel’s defense because he can just be as efficient at the post and from behind the arc, Nicholson’s outside shooting has been breaking the backs of San Miguel’s defense. Nicholson has knocked down 13 3-pointers on 27 attempts in the series to date. Surrounding Nicholson is a quality supporting cast including the likes of Kobey Lam, Glen yang, and Hayden Blankley.
Lam has been a thorn in the side of San Miguel because of his warping speed in transition and ability to strike from deep. Back in Game 2, he pumped out 25 points with four 3-pointers. The Dragons are well-coached and have a system that always puts them in a great position to win games.
San Miguel Beermen (1-2)
Projected Starting Five:
- PG:Simon Enciso
- SG: CJ Perez
- SF: Marcio Lassiter
- PF: Devon Scott
- C: June Mar Fajardo
Junemar Fajardo has pretty much established himself as a force in this series against Bay Area. Despite facing a formidable frontcourt that features an NBA veteran in Andrew Nicholson and a 7-5 beast in Liu Chuanxing, Fajardo is still managing to put up fantastic numbers. Fajardo has scored 56 points on 22/34 shooting from the field to go with 26 rebounds over the course of the last two games of this semifinal series.
Also crucial in San Miguel’s win in Game 3 was the resurgence of import Devon Scott, who rebounded from a letdown performance in Game 2 by scoring 25 points and pulling down 13 rebounds in Game 3. The important thing for San Miguel aside from the fact that it is still alive, is that the Beermen now have the decided momentum for the first time in the series.
Bay Area has yet to play a playoff game coming off a loss, so Game 4 will be a completely different test for the Dragons. It won’t come easy against the Beermen, who are also getting ample firepower from their perimeter guys in Simon Enciso, Marcio Lassiter, Jericho Cruz, and Terrence Romeo.
PREDICTION:
Spread: Bay Area (-5.5) covers the spread.
Over/Under: The total (212.0) hits the Under.
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