Manny Pacquiao tries to stop Calvin Abueva. PBA IMAGES
Mahindra playing-coach Manny Pacquiao guarding Alaska forward Calvin Abueva was by design and by choice. It was what Pacquiao wanted to do the moment he checked in late in the first quarter.
The unexpected matchup, however, produced a predictable result with Abueva getting the better of Pacquiao in a mismatch the way a heavyweight would if pitted against a lightweight or in the case of the former boxing champion, a welterweight.
Sensing a clear advantage over Pacquiao, who is giving up six inches in height, Abueva made the most out of match up, hitting two triples with ease as if it was shootaround.
After drilling in his second 3-pointer, Abueva and Pacquiao shared a moment as the two as the two made their way to the other end of the floor smiling.
“Sabi ko, ‘tsamba,'” Pacquiao said when asked what transpired during that sequence.
Pacquiao played the last three minutes of the first quarter attempting just one shot — a left baseline jumper that went strong — and never returned.
“Okay lang naman. Masyado lang akong relax-relax lang kanina,” said Pacquiao, who was reactivated on Tuesday in lieu of starting point guard LA Revilla.
Revilla is sidelined with a broken nose he suffered during practice.
Pacquiao may have ended scoreless again, but Mahindra did come away with a victory, the team’s fourth in as many games that extended the young franchise’s record run.