Mga laro ngayon:
(Ninoy Aquino Stadium)
5 p.m. – NorthPort vs Converge
7:30 p.m. – Blackwater vs Meralco
SINANDIGAN nina Calvin Oftana at Rondae Hollis-Jefferson ang breakthrough 103-100 win ng TNT laban sa Magnolia sa PBA Commissioner’s Cup kagabi sa Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
Tumapos si Oftana na may bagong career-high 42 points, kabilang ang bagong career-best eight triples habang nagbuhos si Hollis-Jefferson ng 41 points at 13 rebounds na nagresulta sa unang panalo ng Tropang Giga makaraang buksan ang mid-season tournament na may back-to-back losses.
Gayunman ay hindi lubusang masaya si coach Chot Reyes sa panalo bagama’t ibinigay ng kanyang tropa ang kanyang gusto sa maraming bahagi ng laro.
“Our only focus for this game was effort. That was written on big letters on our board because I was very, very upset with the effort that we showed in the first two games,” aniya.
“Even before looking at the technical aspects of the game, not having Jayson (Castro) and Kelly (Williams) and Poy (Erram) as well in the first two games was a big blow for us. But still there’s no excuse for not exerting our best effort,” dagdag ng multi-titled tactician.
“That was why I was very upset with the way we finished the game. We gave up eight points in the last 40 seconds and that goes against everything that we believed in and everything that we stand for as a team.”
Ang tinutukoy ni Reyes ay kung paano napababa ng Magnolia ang 90-102 deficit upang magbanta bago muling pinalobo ni Hollis-Jefferson ang kanilang kalamangan sa mga huli sa kanyang 12 charities sa 103-97, may 7.7 segundo ang nalalabi.
“It’s good to come out with a W but, you know… we don’t want to win that way,” pagbibigay-diin ni Reyes.
Wala nang pananakit sa kanyang kanang balikat na nakaapekto sa kanyang performance sa huling dalawang laro, si Ricardo Ratliffe ay tumapos na may 27 points at 14 rebounds habang nag-ambag si Calvin Abueva ng 18 points.
Naglaro ang Magnolia na wala sina injured Paul Lee at Zavier Lucero.
Ang laro ay isa sa mga pambihirang pagkakataon sa 49-year-old league na ang dalawang teammates ay umiskor ng hindi bababa sa tig-40 points.
“I’m thanking my teammates. They’re passing me the ball na na-o-open and na-ko-convert ko naman. Giving back to them,” sabi ni Oftana.
“Siguro iyon nga, iyung isinulat ni coach na effort. ‘Yun ‘yung pinakamalaking bagay na consistently palagi naming naibibigay sa loob ng court. Kasi hindi na iyon naituturo. Sariling sikap na iyon sa mga players.” CLYDE MARIANO
