MANILA — The San Miguel Beermen defeated the Barangay Ginebra Kings, 102-81, in Game 4 of their best-of-7 PBA Philippine Cup semifinal series at the Mall of Asia Arena on Thursday night.

The Beermen thus took a commanding 3-1 lead in the series, moving a win away from advancing to the finals of the conference where they are the three-time defending champions. Game 5 is set on Saturday night.

Marcio Lassiter led SMB with 23 points, including five three-pointers. He also had six assists and four rebounds. Alex Cabagnot tallied 19 points, eight assists, and three rebounds. Arwind Santos finished with 16 points, nine rebounds, and two steals.

June Mar Fajardo added 14 points and 13 rebounds. Matt Ganuelas-Rosser had 12 points, nine assists, and six boards, while Chris Ross hit all his four shots including three triples to finish with 11 points.

Japeth Aguilar led Ginebra with 31 points, 13 rebounds, and four steals. LA Tenorio added 20 points and three assists. No other Kings scored in double digits.

SMB raced to a 19-point lead, 58-39, late in the first half. They led by as much as 29 points, 84-55, near the end of the third quarter. SMB shot 51-percent from the field and dished out 29 assists.

Game on Friday, March 16, 2018: Magnolia Hotshots vs. NLEX Road Warriors (Game 4 of best-of-7 semifinals; Magnolia leads 2-1)