Chris Ross San Miguel turned a halftime confrontation into one of his strongest outings in recent memory, scoring 20 points as San Miguel beat Barangay Ginebra, 108-102, in Game 4 of their PBA Governors' Cup quarterfinal series at the SMART Araneta Coliseum on Friday evening. The result evened the series and forced a win-or-go-home Game 5.
The flashpoint came shortly after the halftime buzzer, with Ginebra ahead 55-41. Ross and Olsen Racela, a cage legend now serving as a deputy coach, had to be restrained. Ross did not elaborate on what triggered the exchange, and the exact reason remains unknown.
Chris Ross San Miguel comeback
Ross, a 17-year veteran and 12-time champion, said the incident added fuel rather than unsettled him. "As a 17-year veteran, there's a lot of disrespect that I get, and it just fueled me to play that much harder," he said after the game.
He also spoke about the source of that frustration more broadly. "I feel like I get a lot of disrespect from certain people—people that don't know me, people that never talk to me and have a conversation with me off the court. And I just think it's very disrespectful," said the former Best Player of the Conference.
San Miguel's 46-point third quarter
San Miguel had trailed by as much as 17 points before the break. After it, the team produced a 46-point third quarter, including a 22-0 run that pushed them ahead 66-61 approaching the midway mark of the period. Ross scored 13 of his points in that quarter.
He finished with 20 points, six rebounds, nine assists and five steals. "I just wanted to give them energy. And it's too early for us to go home. We wanted to force a decider," Ross said.
On his own condition, he added: "I still have a lot of game left. My body feels really good. I just had a new baby, so she gives me a lot of fuel."
How the run changed the game
Ross pointed to the third-quarter stretch as the part of the performance he valued most. "I think we went on a 22-0 run in the third," he said. "Guys were just playing free, Guys were shooting open shots, guys were passing the ball to each other."
He framed that passage of play as a template. "That's what it looks like when San Miguel's playing unselfishly and all on the same page; we're a pretty dangerous team."
Game 5 set for Antipolo
Both teams have now won two games apiece, and the series moves to a deciding Game 5 next Tuesday in Antipolo. Ross was careful not to treat Game 4 as an achievement in itself.
"We have done nothing today; we just evened the series. They won two straight, we won two straight, there's a decider. We're excited," he said.
Analysis: what the result settles, and what it does not
Game 4 confirms Ross remains a high-leverage contributor at 41, and it shows San Miguel can recover from a double-digit deficit within a single quarter. Neither point resolves the series. Ginebra led by 14 at halftime and had won the two previous games, so the swing reflects one half of basketball rather than a settled matchup.
The officiating and disciplinary dimension is also unresolved. The source account does not establish what caused the halftime exchange, and no further explanation has been offered by either man. Until that is clarified, the incident remains a talking point around the series rather than a matter with a stated outcome.
The original report on this game was published by tiebreakertimes.com.ph.
