1991 San Miguel Beermen season

The 1991 San Miguel Beermen season was the 17th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).

Off-season transactions

Summary

The San Miguel Beermen, which failed to defend all their titles last season, went crownless for the second straight year. In the First Conference, the Beermen brought in Eric Brown as their import. Brown played four games and led the team to two victories, he was replaced by the returning Ricky Wilson, who also came in last season's Third Conference as a replacement. The Beermen did finish second in the team standings with seven wins and four losses, they lost their first four outings in the semifinal round and dropped to fifth place after losing to Diet Sarsi in their last game. San Miguel won only two of their eight semifinal assignments.

In the All-Filipino Conference, the Beermen finish the eliminations with a 6-5 won-loss card, they dropped three of their first four games in the semifinals with injuries hurting the team's chances, playing without Samboy Lim, who was out for the whole season, and Hector Calma. San Miguel played catch-up and won their remaining four matches to earn a playoff match with Diet Sarsi for the right to face Purefoods in the finals. The Beermen lost to the Sizzlers, 95-100.

San Miguel found some hope in the Third Conference with their import Andrew Moten, who led the team to two victories and scored 69 points and hitting 12 triples in their 125-123 win over Shell on September 22, but on their next game against Alaska, Moten blew his top on the physical defense put up by the Milkmen over him and deserted his team during the halftime break, he later return to finish the game, Moten's emotional outburst resulted to the Beermen's 92-111 loss to Alaska. Moten lambasted league officials and was immediately sent home by San Miguel management to protect their image, he was promptly banned by the PBA thereafter. Moten's replacement John Taft lasted four games. Larry Robbins, their third reinforcement played five games, finally Jay Taylor arrived as the fourth and last import of the Beermen in the Third Conference. San Miguel was one win away from availing the 5-of-8 incentive to earn a finals playoff berth, they lost a crucial game to already-ousted Tivoli Milk, 118-128 on November 19, and two nights later on November 21, the Beermen were ousted by Alaska, losing 80-94. San Miguel placed third with a 2-1 series win over Pepsi Hotshots.

Notable dates

July 2: San Miguel inch closer to a semifinal seat in the All-Filipino Conference, sending Alaska to their second straight loss after starting out with four wins in a row, in a 102-91 victory. ^[1]

October 13: Ato Agustin's jumper with a second remaining lift San Miguel to a 126-124 win over Swift as the Beermen tied the Mighty Meaties in the standings with an even 4-4 won-loss slate. ^[2]

October 27: San Miguel makes it to the semifinal round of the Third Conference, the Beermen scored a 138-132 win over already-eliminated Purefoods Tender Juicy Hotdogs for their sixth victory in 11 games. ^[3]

Roster

_{Assistant Coach: Filomeno Pumaren Team Manager: Eddie Veneracion}

References