The defending champion San Miguel Beermen and the TNT Tropang 5G are eyeing a commanding 3-1 edge in their separate semifinals matchup in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Season 50 Philippine Cup at the SM Mall of Asia Arena on Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026.
The Beermen are riding on a momentum following a win over the Gin Kings, while Tropang 5G eyes redemption after losing to Meralco Bolts in Game 3 last Friday.
Gin Kings head coach Tim Cone admitted that they needed extra effort for them to even the best-of-seven series.
“We battled and fought all night. We just didn’t play a good game,” said Cone after a loss on Friday.
“We lacked poise, we lacked an idea of what we wanted to do out there. We looked confused at times. Not just a good game (for us),” he added.
It was Don Trollano who carried SMB in Game 3 with his 33 points, as the franchise’s top contributor June Mar Fajardo, who averages 24 points and 23 rebounds, was limited to only six points.
“Game 1 and Game 2 I wasn’t playing good. The mindset ngayong Game 3 is, just play my game, be aggressive and just take the shot when I’m open,” said Trollano.
Meralco, meanwhile, secured its first win in the series against TNT Tropang 5G with a 97-89 victory.
Chris Banchero and CJ Cansino both scored 18 points to lead the Bolts, who repaid a lopsided Game 2 loss with a wire-to-wire win of their own and trimmed the deficit in the best-of-seven series to 1-2.
“They’ve been manhandling us the last two games so just everybody, from the coaching staff to the players, just coming together and trying to make it a little hard for them,” said Meralco head coach Luigi Trillo.
TNT, for its part, aims to return to winning ways in Game 4. / RSC