Beermen at the crossroads

It isn't only the PBA Commissioner's Cup that San Miguel Beer is concerned about. There's also EASL where the Beermen and Meralco are representing the PBA.

- By JOAQUIN M. HENSON

After San Miguel won the Commissioner's Cup under coach Jorge Gallent last season, the Beermen lost to Meralco in the Philippine Cup Finals then bowed to Barangay Ginebra in the Governors' Cup semis. In the ongoing Commissioner's Cup, San Miguel got off to a 1-2 start, prompting a switch in coaching roles from Gallent to Leo Austria. In EASL, Austria will attempt to reverse a downtrend after the Beermen lost back-to-back games to Suwon and Taoyuan. Tonight, San Miguel will take on Hong Kong Eastern in a critical encounter at the Southorn Stadium, Causeway Bay. Both are in the Group A cellar with identical 0-2 records so it's a virtual battle for survival. Another loss by either squad will leave only two games left and once one more team notches at least three wins, it's the end of the road. The top two placers in each five-team group will advance to the Final Four. As it is, Taoyuan is No. 1 in Grou