PBA: SMB tops TNT in Game Five, moves one win away from title

The San Miguel Beermen erased a 15-point halftime deficit in the third period to outgun the TNT KaTropa, 111-102, and take a 3-2 series lead in the 2017 PBA Commissioner's Cup finals on Friday.

Arwind Santos finished with 27 points, eight rebounds, and five blocks to lead San Miguel, which is just one win away from winning its second straight title this season.

Alex Cabagnot led San Miguel with 28 points. Import Charles Rhodes and Marcio Lassiter scored 20 and 17 points, respectively, while Chris Ross had 10 points, 11 assists, and four boards.

San Miguel weathered a hot start from TNT led by Ranidel De Ocampo, who scored 19 points in the first half to give his team a 61-46 edge.

With Santos moving to the power forward spot, the Beermen countered with their own scoring spree in the third, overwhelming TNT in a 25-9 run punctuated by a Lassiter triple for a 71-70 advantage.

San Miguel ended the third period with an 82-79 advantage.

The Beermen were able to stretch their lead to 10 with seven minutes remaining, prompting TNT head coach Nash Racela to call for time and insert Anthony Semerad. Semerad did make an impact, stringing together nine points, but Rhodes responded at the other end to keep San Miguel ahead by 9, 107-98, heading into the final two minutes.

Back to back stops from TNT lead to four straight from Troy Rosario and Jayson Castro, keeping it interesting in the final 1:08, 107-102, but a Santos basket with 34 seconds remaining put the game out of reach, 109-102. 

De Ocampo led TNT in scoring, but did not score in the second half. Import Josh Smith added 15 markers, as Rosario, Semerad, and Castro contributed 12 each. —JST, GMA News