San Miguel Alab Pilipinas shoots for a commanding 2-0 lead against the Mono Vampire Basketball Club, as Game 2 of the ABL Finals is set to go underway on April 25, 8PM at the Sta. Rosa Arena in Laguna City.
San Miguel Alab Pilipinas and Mono Vampire figured in an instant classic in Game 1, as the home team defeated the Thai-based squad 143-130 in overtime. Mono Vampire had the advantage via a two point lead with a few seconds remaining in regulation, but Alab World Import Justin Brownlee intentionally missed his second free throw, his second straight miss at the charity stripe. He kept the ball alive just enough for teammate Renaldo Balkman to tip it in, tying the game and sending it into overtime.
With Sam Deguara fouled out, and Jason Brickman suffering from a lower leg injury, Mono Vampire simply ran out of answers, as San Miguel Alab Pilipinas rode the momentum to big win in front of a capacity crowd.
The missed free throws in regulation were perhaps the only mistake that Brownlee made in a historic performance. The first time World Import shattered the ABL Finals record for points in a game set by Justin Howard, as he scored 46 points, and also tallied 11 rebounds, 9 assists and 2 steals. Brownlee was absolutely relentless all game long, utlizing his versatility to frustrate Mono Vampire.
But Brownlee also had a lot of help, as reigning Local MVP Ray Parks finished with a stellar game as well, adding 27 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals. Renaldo Balkman also had a monster performance with 39 points, 15 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals.
Despite the loss, Mono Vampire should still have a lot of confidence based on their Game 1 performance. Mike Singletary was assertive on offense and exploded for 42 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists. Sam Deguara also dominated down the stretch before fouling out, as he finished with a double-double of 21 points, 11 rebounds and 4 blocks.
If Game 1 is any indication of what will transpire, Game 2 could be full of offensive fireworks once again. Aside from Brownlee’s record setting performance, Jason Brickman also set a new ABL Finals record with 14 assists, and Parks’ 27 points was also a new Local Player Finals scoring record. In fact, the two teams combined to score the most total points scored in a Game in ABL history.
Will Game 2 follow the same theme? Can Mono Vampire even up the Finals, or will San Miguel Alab Pilipinas emerge one win away from the ABL Title? All these questions will be answered during tipoff.
