THE San Miguel Beermen will ride on the momentum heading to the quarterfinals after capping off the elimination round with a resounding win against the Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup on Saturday night, May 9, 2026, at the Ynares Center-Antipolo.
The Beermen beat the Fuel Masters, 116-104, for their third straight victory, finishing the elimination round with a 7-5 (win-loss) record, locking up at least a share of fifth place.
Phoenix, meanwhile, dropped to 6-6 card and is now in a rough spot with a possible quarterfinals clash with the top seed.
But final seedings are not settled yet.
TNT and Magnolia can catch the Beermen or drop to a tie with Phoenix when the eliminations wrap up Sunday at the MOA Arena. Both teams are playing as of press time.
For San Miguel, the math matters, but the form matters more.
“Magandang panalo, sana madala naming sa playoffs,” said Jericho Cruz in a report posted on the PBA website
“Talagang sabi coach na importante ang second group. Usually slow start kami, at job ng second group is to bring energy. Kung ano ang kulang ng first group, yun ang gagawin namin,” added Cruz, who scored 20 points off the bench.
“We had a bad start, something na ayaw naming mangyari. Mabuti nag-pick up (ang laro) sa second half,” said SMB coach Leo Austria.
Import Bennie Boatwright lifted the Beermen again with 34 points, seven rebounds, and five assists.
Meanwhile, Phoenix import Johnathan Williams III scored 26 points and 13 rebounds in a losing effort.
The Scores:
San Miguel (116) - Boatwright 34, Cruz 20, Trollano 14, Perez 12, Lassiter 9, Miller 9, Fajardo 7, Rosales 6, Brondial 3, Tautuaa 2.
Phoenix (104)- Williams 26, Tuffin 18, Santos 17, Ynot 11, Tio 10, Daves 6, Nelle 6, Gozum 4, Delos Santos 2, Cullar 2, Ando 2. / RSC
