MERALCO guns for a commanding 3-1 series lead when it battles a beleaguered San Miguel Beer in Game 4 of their PBA Philippine Cup Finals on Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

The Bolts scraped past the Beermen, 93-89 on Sunday to claim a 2-1 lead behind Chris Newsome's late-game triple.

Still, Meralco coach Luigi Trillo remains cautious, warning his wards that SMB is a dangerous and battle-tested squad capable of bouncing back strong.

"We have to play at a high level against San Miguel. They always have poise, and they have won a lot of championships," said Trillo, heading to their 7:30 p.m. collision.

"We have to be more disciplined than them. Our feet need to be grounded and just keep playing."

Meralco's bigs led by Raymund Almazan and Cliff Hodge have done a solid defensive job in containing San Miguel star center June Mar Fajardo, who was held down to just 12 points on five attempts from the field in Sunday's loss.

Almazan also scored 17 points, even as the 6-foot-7 Meralco big man and Hodge hauled down 13 boards each.

But then again, the Beermen remain a dangerous bunch, with CJ Perez, Marcio Lassiter, Don Trollano and Jericho Cruz capable of striking back as they try to avoid seeing their team fall in a 1-3 series hole.

Trillo explained that everyone on the floor will have to make good decisions to avoid making the same mental lapse, something that the Bolts committed, leading to their 95-94 loss in Game 2.

"We have to make good decisions. All the five guys have to make good decisions. This game (3) may have been won but clearly, we need to improve some things," he added.

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