by Jonas Terrado
Phoenix Pulse’s physicality is getting into June Mar Fajardo’s skin that the San Miguel Beer is trying his best to keep his cool.
Fajardo said his patience will be tested for the rest of the PBA Philippine Cup semifinal series after dealing with everything Fuel Masters threw at him after two games.
“Nagtitimpi lang ako,” Fajardo said after San Miguel claimed a 2-0 series lead with a 92-82 win on Monday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
“Pag pumatol ako sa physicality, mawawala ako sa game. As much as possible di ko na lang papatulan yung mga ganun,” he added.
The rugged nature of the semis almost left Fajardo with a serious injury when he fell hard on the floor during a rebound situation in Game 1, hitting his left cheek in the process.
He was quick to brush off the incident but endured more trouble as Phoenix went not only with Calvin Abueva and Justin Chua but also veteran big man Doug Kramer in hopes of containing the five-time Most Valuable Player.
The physicality is also primed to see its first sanctions as Christian Standhardinger and Abueva faced potential fines or suspensions when they were summoned by PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial at presstime.
Standhardinger was ejected in Game 2 when he kicked Abueva during a looseball scramble in the first half.
The ponytailed big man of the Beermen maintained that the kick was “accidental” after he and Abueva were entangled.
Abueva’s possible sanction stemmed from flashing a dirty finger after committing a sixth personal foul late in the fourth quarter.
He also hastened Phoenix’s downfall by going straight to the locker room instead of heading to the bench, resulting in a technical foul for delay of game.
San Miguel was ahead 84-80 when Abueva did his antics.
