Aug 15, 2019

McCullough, Beermen determined to get the job done, KaTropa try to extend series

From the pit to the brink.

With its resilience, reigning Philippine Cup five-peat champ San Miguel Beer has dug itself out of tough situation and is now in a position to claim what could well be among its sweetest championships.

The Beermen are out of a quagmire, having overcome a mere seventh-place finish in the elims, a match-up with a win-once quarters opponent and a tough catch-up basketball early in the finals.

With back-to-back wins in the last two games, the Beermen are now upfront with two chances of winning the 2019 PBA Commissioner's Cup finals.

Three-to-two-games up and all pumped up, Chris McCullough and his teammates take their first attempt to wrap it up in Game Six at 7 p.m. Friday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

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McCullough was so pumped-up by his Game Five heroics and their dramatic victory that he practically declared the series is theirs.

"We're going to win this s..t!, we're going to win this s...t!," said McCullough moment after a 35-point explosion that fueled SMB's come-from-behind 99-94 victory Wednesday.

"One more game, we'll come ready to play, be mentally locked in, not let it go to a Game 7," McCullough added.

The KaTropa, however, insist the series is not over.

TNT import Terrence Jones said he's not yet ready to go home. He said: "It's either win or be done and I'm not ready to be done."

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And Jones could find an added motivation on the antics of Arwind Santos that he didn't find funny.

"As a father & black man this can't be ignored. It's UNACCEPTABLE. Swift, significant action needs to be taken by the PBA to send a STRONG message that racism in ANY form will NOT be tolerated," said Jones on his Twitter account.

It's Jones' message against Santos' monkey taunt against him Wednesday night.

Jones is also surely aching to redeem himself from his endgame meltdown allowing the Beermen to win the game and finally get ahead in the series.

The KaTropa must win two in a row now to salvage a bid to end a long title drought.

"It's not over yet. They're up by one but we still have a chance in Game Six. We just need to learn our lesson and be mentally tough in situations like these, especially against an experienced, champion team. We'll try our best again," said TNT mentor Bong Ravena.

SMB coach Leo Austria isn't counting TNT out but said they will do their best not to let their chance slip away.

"Their backs are against the wall and they will do everything to even the series. But this is an opportunity for us," said Austria. (SB)