By JONAS TERRADO
San Miguel Beer’s Chris Ross and Terrence Romeo along with Barangay Ginebra’s LA Tenorio reached new milestones during their marquee showdown in the PBA Philippine Cup.
Ross moved past Dindo Pumaren for fifth on the all-time steals list while Romeo became the 44th player to hit 500 career triples during the Beermen’s 111-102 win over the Gin Kings Friday, Sept. 10 at the Don Honorio Ventura State University in Bacolor, Pampanga.
Tenorio, on the other hand, is now ranked 10th on the career assists department, ironically surpassing former SMB playmaker and Ginebra assistant coach Olsen Racela.
Ross entered the game needing two steals to overtake Pumaren, who had 902 during a 15-year career which was spent mostly with Purefoods.
He got the second steal off Scottie Thompson with eight minutes left in the opening period which allowed him to climb up in the rankings.
The multi-time Defensive Player of the Year finished with four steals to make it 905 for his career. He trails Johnny Abarrientos (1,358), Ramon Fernandez (1,302), Bernie Fabiosa (1,235) and Robert Jaworski (937) on the all-time list.
Romeo, meanwhile, hit his 500th three-pointer in style when he scored off a foul from Thompson with 1:57 left in the ballgame.
The shot proved to be crucial for SMB as it extended the lead to 104-97 amid multiple attempts by Ginebra to erase a 19-point first half deficit.
He also became the 13th active player to reach the milestone, joining the likes of Rain or Shine’s James Yap, Tenorio, teammates Arwind Santos, Alex Cabagnot and Marcio Lassiter, TNT’s Jayson Castro and Magnolia’s Paul Lee.
Tenorio’s pass to Thompson for a three-point shot that reduced SMB’s lead to 58-53 in the third dislodged Racela, who dished out 3,085 assists in a stellar 18-year career with Purefoods and San Miguel, out of the top 10.
The Ginebra floor general ended up with 11 assists for 3,090 in his career, trailing Jaworski (5,825), Fernandez (5,220), Pumaren (4,043), Abarrientos (3,757), Jimmy Alapag (3,401), injured SMB guard Alex Cabagnot (3,370), Willy Generalao (3,256), Ronnie Magsanoc (3,228) and Philip Cezar (3,130).
