HAVING DRAWN first blood in their best-of-seven PBA Philippine Cup finals series last time around, the Magnolia Hotshots Pambansang Manok look to double up on the San Miguel Beermen in Game Two today at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Fashioned out a gutsy 99-94 victory in the series opener on Wednesday, the Hotshots try to continue rolling and move further closer to dethroning the Beermen as champions of the season-opening Philippine Basketball Association tournament.

In Game One, Magnolia banked on a total team effort on both ends of the court as it successfully overcame San Miguel, which got a monster game from reigning league most valuable player June Mar Fajardo.

Paul Lee led six players in double digits in scoring for the Hotshots with 18 points, followed by Ian Sangalang and Mark Barroca with 17 apiece.

Jio Jalalon had 16 and Rafi Reavis and Justin Melton finished with 12 and 11 points, respectively.

Magnolia stood firm down the stretch and continuously frustrated the charge of San Miguel in booking the win.

Mr. Fajardo showed the way for the Beermen with 35 points and 21 rebounds.

Alex Cabagnot, meanwhile, had 18 points with Arwind Santos tallying 13 points and 15 boards for San Miguel, which is out to claim a fifth straight All-Filipino title.

“We’ll just be ready for Game Two. I think San Miguel will make the adjustments after today. We, too, have to adjust especially our perimeter defense,” said Magnolia coach Chito Victolero after Game One.

“One win does not win a series. We have experienced being down in a series and there is still long way to go,” he added.

For the Beermen, they said they hope to play better in the next game, especially with their shooting percentage and shot selection, to improve their chances in games.

“We are lucky this is not a knockout game and we have a chance to adjust. Credit to Magnolia’s defense for making it tough for us tonight,” said San Miguel coach Leo Austria.

“We will watch the tape and see what we can do for the next game,” he added.

Game Two of the finals is set for 7 p.m. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

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