COLD off the bench, Rob Herndon heated up right away and helped San Miguel Beer beat TNT in an overtime battle at the MOA Arena in Pasay City Friday.
Herndon dished out a clutch performance in his first outing in the PBA Philippine Cup title playoff, saving the night for the Beermen with a 108-100 triumph that gave them the 2-1 upper hand in the race-to-four series.
Subbing for the fouled-out CJ Perez, the 6-foot-2 third-string gunner instantly knocked down a three-pointer in the regulation then strung up a twinner and another trey to spark a decisive run that sent Beermen racing to a second straight win in the series.
June Mar Fajardo had a hulking performance with 27 points and the same number of rebounds and Jericho Cruz (18), Marcio Lassiter (13), Vic Manuel (12) and Perez (11) contributed double-digit outputs as SMB came through with a follow-up to their 109-100 victory in Game 2.
The Beermen go for the pivotal 3-1 lead as the series swings back to the Smart Araneta Coliseum for Game 4 Sunday.
Sponsored content: Herndon starred for SMB at endgame although he committed a crucial blunder, with a delay-of-game infraction in the last 11.7 seconds of regulation, opening an opportunity for the Tropang Giga to steal the game.
TNT tied the count at 94-all on a free throw by RR Pogoy, but the Tropang Giga couldn't make the most of the opportunity with Jayson Castro missing an attempt for game-winner at the buzzer.
As in the last game, TNT dragged San Miguel to a tough nip-and-tuck showdown as Pogoy fired 25 points, with Mikey Williams and Castro adding 17 apiece, Poy Erram and Glenn Khobuntin chipping in 11 each and Kelly Williams tossing in 10.
The Tropang Giga, still minus head coach Chot Reyes for a second straight game, knocked in 13 three-pointers as against the Beermen's 10.
In the end, the Beermen just won't be denied.
Sponsored content: In a tribute to their deep bench, the Beermen didn't lack the firepower even with Lassiter and Perez going out on fouls successively in the fourth quarter.
Also taking charge on the exit of Lassiter and Perez were Cruz and Ross.
Fajardo was the star of the show early on.
The Scores:
San Miguel 108 - Fajardo 27, Cruz 18, Lassiter 13, Manuel 12, Perez 11, Ross 8, Herndon 8, Tautuaa 6, Brondial 5, Enciso 0
TNT 100 - Pogoy 25, M.Williams 17, Castro 17, Erram 11, Khobuntin 11, K.Williams 10, Rosario 4, Reyes 3, Marcelo 2, Ganuelas-Rosser 0, Montalbo 0, Cruz 0
Quarters: 27-19, 49-46, 74-76, 94-94, 108-100
