Lassiter, Ross save skidding Beermen

MANILA, Philippines — Chris Ross and Marcio Lassiter executed a perfect play in their final possession as San Miguel Beer salvaged a 108-106 victory over Kia after nearly blowing a huge 26-point bulge to virtually claim a Top Two finish in the PBA Philippine Cup eliminations at the Smart Araneta Coliseum last night.

With 1.8 seconds left in the clock and the count tied at 106, the Beermen banked on Ross and Lassiter’s brilliant winning play to hold off the Picanto that waged an amazing endgame fightback behind former SMB players Ronald Tubid and Rashawn McCarthy.

Lassiter scored on a twisting under-goal shot on a perfectly executed bounce pass from Ross as the Beermen spoiled the exploits of Tubid and McCarthy, nailing the win to firm up their hold of top spot with an 8-2 card.

“It’s an option that Ross and Lassiter created. They showed their basketball sense. They saw the advantage and they took the opportunity,” said San Miguel coach Leo Austria.

“It could have been a disaster for us and not a good sign for us going to the playoffs. But as I’ve said many times before, whether it’s a 30-point or a one-point win, we’ll take it,” Austria added.

Before the Ross-Lassiter play, Arwind Santos came through with a big defensive stop, blocking a shot by Glenn Khobuntin.

Later in the night, Jvee Casio piled up a career-first triple-double job highlighted by two important free throws in the last 11.4 seconds as Alaska Milk outlasted Rain or Shine, 99-95, in a gut-wrenching battle to seal a spot in the best-of-three quarterfinals.

Casio delivered 22 points, 10 rebounds and the same number of assists to lead the Aces to a closing 7-4 mark in the elims.

Rain or Shine was stalled at fifth place at 5-4.