SMB looks unbeatable again as Fajardo returns
After getting himself back in condition in two weeks of pool exercise and biking, June Mar Fajardo may well finally plunge back into action in their penultimate game in the PBA Governors Cup Saturday.
The 6-foot-10 behemoth, who has recovered from a stress fracture, joined the Beermen in their warmup session in their 114-107 win over the NorthPort Batang Pier Wednesday at the Cuneta Astrodome.
And he is finally set for a "break-in" as the Beermen tangle with the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters at 6:45 p.m. of a rare Petron Blaze Saturday double-header at the Alonte Sports Arena in Binan Laguna.
Fajardo will try to help SMB secure a berth in the quarterfinals while also trying to reignite his pursuit of a record-setting fifth MVP award.
The Beermen seek a third straight win as they also try to keep alive a bid to land in the Top Four at the end of the single-round-robin elimination phase.
The Elasto Painters, meanwhile, play the first of last two games that they need to sweep to have a shot at a playoff for the last quarters berth.
Rain or Shine is on the brink of elimination at 2-7 following successive losses to Columbian Dyip, Meralco and Phoenix Petroleum.
The E-Painters, however, are expected to wage an all-out battle to fight off outright elimination.
Odds, however, are stacked heavily against them especially with their badly crippled lineup minus big men Raymond Almazan and Beau Belga.
It doesn't help that they're not getting offensive punch from import Terrence Watson.
Watson averages only 16.14 points, 11.4 rebounds and 1.7 assists - a far cry from the numbers being churned out by the explosive cast of imports in this tourney.
In contrast, SMB import Kevin Murphy produces 32.4 points, 8.4 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game.
Then there's Christian Standhardinger who's also dishing out import-like numbers with 25.3 markers and 12.7 board an outing.
Add now Fajardo, and San Miguel now looms as a threat to anybody.