The San Miguel Beermen make their Philippine Cup debut after winning the previous conference. They take on the struggling Rain or Shine Elasto Painters.

Catch the game on March 15th, at 4:30 PM.

San Miguel Beermen (0-0)

Projected starting five:

  • Chris Ross
  • Jericho Cruz
  • CJ Perez
  • Marcio Lassiter
  • Junemar Fajardo

The mighty Beermen are back in action following yet another championship run. As per usual, they remain as the deepest and most talented team in the league – clear-cut title favorites again and again.

Seven-time PBA MVP and quite possibly the greatest player in league history Junemar Fajardo remains the the forefront of SMB’s powerful attack. He continues to be surrounded by gangbusters – sharpshooter Marcio Lassiter, two-way floor general Chris Ross, feisty guard Jericho Cruz, athletic freak CJ Perez, and microwave guards Terrence Romeo and Don Trollano just to name a few. Pretty much all of those guys can be top players on other teams, and yet they are all under the Beermen umbrella.

SMB has beaten Rain or Shine in three-straight meetings, averaging 123.8 points per game. Friday should feature a similar outcome.

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Rain or Shine Elasto Painters (0-3)

Projected starting five:

  • Anton Asistio
  • Gabe Norwood
  • Adrian Nocum
  • Beau Belga
  • Santi Santillan

Coach Yeng Guiao and his men aren’t getting it done. Though competitive, they would just keep on falling a couple of plays short. They enter Friday still winless after three games, losing 113-107 to the Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings, 121-117 to the Meralco Bolts, and 108-107 to the TNT Tropang Giga. That’s 110.3 PPG and 114.0 PAPG.

Nevertheless, the grind rolls on with stretch big man Santi Santillan being the key figure. The former De La Salle standout has 20.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 2.3 threes per contest in the conference, and will be in for quite the matchup opposite Fajardo.

Anton Asistio will be there looking to continue his efficiency. He had a solid conference debut last Friday with 21 points on 7-of-11 shooting, five of which were from downtown. Veteran forward and enforcer Beau Belga, meanwhile, chips in 9.3 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game, and could still be factor, although his 34% clip is atrocious and should be improved. 

PREDICTIONS:

Spread: The Beermen (-5.5) win and cover the spread.

Over/Under: The total goes over 213.5

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