Fajardo leads BPC race
With his imposing double-double averages, San Miguel Beer giant June Mar Fajardo is in the running for an unprecedented sixth PBA Best Player of the Conference award.
Fajardo led everybody in the stats race through the PBA Governors Cup elimination round with 37.9 points a game amassed from his stats line of 18.5 points, 10.6 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 2.0 blocks and 0.9 steals an outing.
Going into the playoffs, Meralco’s Chris Newsome (33.273) and Barangay Ginebra’s Greg Slaughter (33.091) are running second and third, followed by another SMB player Arwind Santos (32.273) and TNT KaTropa ace Jason Castro (32.200).
The next five through the elims were Alex Cabagnot (30.273), GlobalPort’s Stanley Pringle (29.444), Alaska’s Calvin Abueva (29.0), Meralco’s Baser Amer (28.9) and NLEX’s Kevin Alas (28.727).
The top five after the semifinal round will be the official BPC candidates, who will then dispute the coveted award on a balloting among the Commissioner’s Office, the players and the sports media.
Though hit by a calf injury midway through the elims, Fajardo collected solid numbers putting him on the line for yet another BPC award.
As the most dominant player of his time, the University of Cebu product has been the reigning all-Filipino best player in the last four years. He’s also got one Governors Cup BPC plum which he pocketed last year.
Former SMB great Danny Ildefonso is the only other player to have won five BPC wares.
Fajardo was one of only three local players to average double-double numbers in the elims – the other being Abueva (15 ppg and 10.63 rpg) and Sean Anthony (13.18 ppg and 10.18 rpg).
Pringle topped the scoring race with 19 points an outing, Abueva emerged No. 1 in rebounds with 10.63 while Chris Ross, the Commissioner’s Cup BPC winner, was the best in assists (6.45) and in steals (2.82).—