Rediscovering the troops

San Miguel Beer head coach Leo Austria has rediscovered the value of his shock troopers and the change in his rotation is the reason why Magnolia is biting the dust with the 111-87 blowout in Game 3 of the PBA Philippine Cup Finals at the Smart Araneta Coliseum last Sunday the proof of the transformation.

In the eliminations, five San Miguel players averaged at least 35 minutes and everyone else logged whatever time was left for scrubs. Brian Heruela, for instance, logged 11.3 minutes. Matt Ganuelas-Rosser had the most exposure outside of the elite five with 21.8 minutes an outing and two starts. Gabby Espinas came in next with 19 minutes.

The imbalance in San Miguel’s rotation was evident in Game 1 of the Finals where Magnolia came from 20 down to win, 105-103. Three Beermen played at least 41 minutes and Arwind Santos nearly made it four with 39:21 minutes. Relying on a small nucleus backfired on Austria as Magnolia had fresher legs down the stretch. An 18-0 blast bridging the third and fourth quarters made the difference as the Hotshots made Austria rethink about his rotation. San Miguel produced only a single point from the bench while Magnolia shone brightly with 47.

Ian Sangalang killed San Miguel in the series opener with 29 points, 14 in the fourth period as he outworked JuneMar Fajardo with the game on the line. Starting Game 2, Sangalang was a marked man and hasn’t been the same. Sangalang was held to 11 points, zero in the fourth quarter, as San Miguel took the rematch, 92-77, with Austria’s shock troopers delivering 20 points. This time, Austria managed his players’ minutes with the goal of deepening the rotation. Only Santos played at least 40 minutes and Heruela scored 10 points off the bench in 15:08 minutes.

In Game 3 last Sunday, Austria put his full trust and confidence on the San Miguel relievers. Fajardo and two other starters Chris Ross and Alex Cabagnot didn’t even play in the fourth period. Austria started the payoff quarter with Espinas, Heruela, MGR, Marcio Lassiter and Santos on the floor and the combination got off to a 17-3 blitz as San Miguel erected a 92-71 lead. For the second straight contest, Sangalang was scoreless in the last 12 minutes and finished with a total of only six points on 2-of-10 field goals and 2-of-4 free throws.

San Miguel’s bench tallied 33 points with Heruela netting 11, eight in the fourth period, in 22:01 minutes Not a single San Miguel player logged 40 or more minutes and seven checked in for at least 20 minutes as Austria fielded 13 players. Even undrafted Chico Lanete, the team’s senior statesman at 38, got to play 2:28 minutes. Lanete broke into the league in 2007 with Purefoods and among active players, is the most tenured pro without a championship. Lanete, Von Pessumal and Louie Vigil are the only Beermen in the roster without a title to their name.

Heruela, 28, has been a revelation in the Finals. He was picked on the third round by Blackwater in the 2014 draft and played a season with the Elite before moving to San Miguel for a reunion with University of Cebu teammate Fajardo. With Ross not 100 percent, Heruela has played more minutes than usual at point guard and he’s been a bright light in Austria’s rotation. Two other relievers have been productive. MGR, 27, and Espinas, 36, are providing impact off the bench. MGR was the fourth overall draft pick in 2014 after Stanley Pringle, Kevin Alas and Ronald Pascual and since his trade from TNT, is making his mark at San Miguel as a Gabe Norwood-type defensive specialist. He’s a livewire on the court and an infectious energizer for Austria.

Espinas was the fifth overall draft pick in 2006 after Kelly Williams, Santos, Joseph Yeo and LA Tenorio. He played with Jayson Castro and Beau Belga at PCU in the NCAA before turning pro with San Miguel in 2006-07. Espinas has gone full circle in his 11-year career. From his rookie season with San Miguel, he went from Air 21 to Red Bull to Barako Bull to Sta. Lucia to Meralco to Alaska to GlobalPort and finally, back with the Beermen. In Game 3 last Sunday, he scored nine points in 19:12 minutes and displayed his championship experience. Espinas is playing in his eighth Finals and has so far, won six titles.

With Marc Pingris and Justin Melton out of commission, Magnolia isn’t the same team that led the league in defense in the eliminations, giving up only 84.1 points a game. Magnolia’s meltdown in the fourth period of Game 3 may be an ominous indication that San Miguel could end the series in five. The Hotshots surrendered 36 points in the fourth quarter and scored only 19 in a reversal that led to the most points yielded by Magnolia – 111 – in any game this conference.