 |
| Aside from the MVP plaque, Junemar Fajardo also gets to take home a Honda motorcycle. Dennis Acosta |
By Ivan Saldajeno
QUEZON CITY--As anticipated, Junemar Fajardo was named the Most Valuable Player of the recently concluded PBA Philippine Cup Finals.
The 6-foot-10 San Miguel center averaged 22.9 points, 19.1 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks a game during the series, which went the full seven games.
In the decider on Wednesday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, however, Fajardo made history.
Despite an error-prone outing where he committed nine turnovers, Fajardo grabbed a total of 31 rebounds, setting a new single-game record in caroms for a local.
Aside from becoming the first local player to tally 30 rebounds, Fajardo also broke the previous record set by Rolando Simbulan, which has been there since the league's inaugural year in 1975.
Fajardo's new career-high in rebounds came six years after his previous record of 26 during the 2013 Governors' Cup Finals against the same Purefoods franchise that SMB would eventually beat for its fifth straight Philippine Cup title.
Follow him on Twitter: @IvanSaldajeno
.JPG)
.jpg)
