Compton keeps faith in his Aces
Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
It would be safe to assume that, after three straight losses in a best-of-seven series, an ordinary team would already have its head bowed at this time.
Not Alaska, though. The Aces aren’t that ordinary.
“I have a special group of guys, and they were fighting it out in practice today,” said Alaska coach Alex Compton when asked about the morale of his Aces, three days removed from losing a commanding 3-0 lead over San Miguel Beer and getting dragged into a pressure-packed Game 7 for the Smart Bro-PBA Philippine Cup.
“I love my guys, I love their character, and sometimes, that’s all a coach could ask for,” he said. “I’ve been saying this: I’m blessed to be handling such a group. I just hope they can overcome the adversity.”
The decider, which happens tomorrow at 7 p.m. at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay, is a game very few expected to take place after the Aces buried the Beermen in a 3-0 hole that no team in league history has ever climbed out of.
Momentum in the rubber match will obviously be on the side of the Beermen, whom Compton acknowledged as a special team as well.
There’s also a special prize awaiting the Beermen with a fourth straight win, the very prize that obviously fuels the San Miguel juggernaut: The distinction of being the first squad to come back from such a deficit and win.
No team has even forced a Game 7 after falling 0-3 behind. And after preventing Alaska’s balloons in the rafters from dropping since Game 4, San Miguel will have a few of its own hanging up there tomorrow.
“It’s anybody’s game,” San Miguel coach Leo Austria said. “And because of that, all statistics of the first six games will [be useless].”
This will be the second straight season that both squads will dispute the league’s most prestigious title in a Game 7.
Last season, San Miguel lost a commanding lead and then needed a three-pointer from Arwind Santos to pip the Aces.
Compton didn’t mention anything about last season’s heart-rending defeat, only wishing that his Aces could execute better tomorrow.
“We just didn’t make the shots in Game 6,” Compton said. “If we can be just a little sharper, we’ll be fine.”
Like his players, Compton still has his head held up high, it seems.
“I’m pretty tired [because of the series],” Compton said. “But I’m excited in believing that something great is going to happen.”
