SMB starts title series

THE SAN MIGUEL Beermen try to carry the country’s banner as they take on the Indonesia Warriors in Game 1 of the best-of-three finals series in the Aean Basketball League today at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.

Something is bound to give in what is expected to be an explosive matchup with both squads riding high with momentum.

The Beermen won nine of their last 10 games while the Warriors are on a seven-game winning streak, which included a sweep of the Philippines’ other team in this league the Philippine Patriots.

The Beermen, on the other hand, needed a fantastic effort in Game 3 to take care of the Westport Malaysia Dragons in the other semifinals matchup.

San Miguel holds the psychological advantage heading to the finals after they defeated the Warriors in all three games that they faced one another this season.

An interesting matchup also looms at the guard position with SMB’s Chris Banchero facing off against Indonesia’s Stanley Pringle. This will be the first time they will face off against each other and fans are giddy in anticipation with Banchero averaging 13.7 points and 10.3 assists per game in the semis including setting a new ABL record with 15 assists in Game 1 of their playoff series against the Dragons which the Beermen won 111-104 in overtime.

Still, the Beermen’s chances hinge largely on their imports Nick Fazekas and Duke Crews. Fazekas averaged 21.7 points per game while Crews added 18.3 points per game against the Dragons. /Correspondent Jonas Panerio