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This Day in PBA History: SMB rips Purefoods in Game 7 to win All-Filipino title

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Rey Joble

Since Purefoods entered the PBA, San Miguel Beer had always been its tormentor.The Beermen had no plans of surrendering to the next glamour boys of the PBA, moreso its status as the league&#x27;s symbol of greatness.In the 1988 Open Conference, the Beermen outlasted the upstart Hotdogs, an emerging powerhouse, in a grueling seven-game series.They met again in the 1989 All-Filipino Finals, with the Beermen, now even more formidable following the addition of four-time MVP Mon Fernandez, repeating over the Hotdogs by winning the crown in six games.Their third finals meeting was yet another thrilling encounter between these powerhouse teams.Purefoods, led by Alvin Patrimonio and Jerry Codinera, had just made changes over the past two years.The Hotdogs lost Jojo Lastimosa prior to the start of the 1991 season, but picked up Elmer Reyes, who helped the squad in winning its first ever All-Filipino title. Also gone in the team were Al Solis and Jack Tanuan, who were crucial players in the team&#x27;s first championship run in the season-ending tournament of the 1990 season.Nelson Asaytono followed when he transferred to Purefoods&#x27; corporate rival, Swift, and became the team&#x27;s new franchise player.But the bigger problem came in 1992 right after the First Conference.After Purefoods got eliminated early in the First Conference, Ely Capacio, the coach who steered Purefoods to the All-Filipino title, resigned as head coach, leaving Ding Panganiban, the Hotdogs&#x27; team manager, to handle the team.Panganiban rose to the challenge and led the Hotdogs all the way to the championship round.San Miguel, on the other hand, had an unproductive two seasons as the team had been riddled by injuries.But by the 1992 season, the big guns were slowly coming back.Samboy Lim has returned, so as Hector Calma. Ato Agustin had risen to stardom and was playing his MVP season. So when the Beermen faced the Hotdogs, San Miguel was so determined to reclaim its stature as the league&#x27;s standard for success.Game 1 of their best-of-seven championship series was a defensive struggle and the Beermen went on to beat the Hotdogs, 85-77, as Lim, Calma and Agustin joined forces in the end game to take the head start of the series.But the next two games belonged to the Hotdogs as Patrimonio, the MVP of the season just passed, posted import-like numbers in leading his team to victories.In Game 3, The Captain had 36 points, including two crucial free throws in the closing seconds of the game, allowing the Hotdogs to escape with a 112-111 win and take a 2-1 series lead.But San Miguel struck back and won the next two games to grab the lead in the race-to-four series.Game 6 was all Purefoods as Boy Cabahug knocked in 28 points in a 107-99 triumph as the Hotdogs set up a winner-take-all match.On this day, 30 years ago, experience once again prevailed as the Beermen lorded it over anew against the Hotdogs, who couldn&#x27;t keep up with the firepower of San Miguel.Looking back, Dindo Pumaren, who rose to become the starting point guard of Purefoods in the 1991 and 1992 seasons, felt there were years they could have won more championships.&quot;May mga years na dapat nag-champion kami, pero minama kami nu’ng mga veterans noon,&quot; Pumaren told ABS-CBN News. &quot;Pero nagma-mature kami noon, kaya lang hindi namin nakuha. Marami kaming chances. Ang composition ng team namin maganda. Nu’ng una nga hindi pa ako starter noon kasi ang dami naming gwardya.&quot;Franz Pumaren was playing against younger brother Dindo, his counterpart at Purefoods. But the rivalry between the two squads fueled the heated confrontation between the present and future stars of the PBA then.&quot;Ang difference noon, ’yung rivalry talagang tunay na rivalry,&quot; said the elder Pumaren. &quot;Walang batian noon. Sa ULTRA noon ’yung dressing room, iisa lang puntahan ninyo. HIndi kayo magha-hi or hello. Ngayon, &#x27;Uy, friend ko sa IG (Instagram), kamusta?’ Dati, wala. Maraming napa-fine noon sa PBA kasi iba talaga kapag nagsuntukan.&quot;

San Miguel's veterans always had Purefoods' number in the Hotdogs franchise's beginnings.