Meralco Bolts head coach Norman Black. PBA IMAGES
There was no doubt in coach Norman Black’s mind that the root of Meralco’s downfall on Sunday boiled down to some of his key players being unprepared in its game against GlobalPort.
“Some guys were a little bit listless tonight. There’s no question some guys didn’t come to play tonight as far as their effort and production in the first half. That’s the reason why we’re down,” Black said.
Fortunately for Black, his second unit stepped up and gave him the boost his team needed to compete and overhaul a 14-point deficit, 55-41, early in the third quarter before forcing two overtimes.
“Luckily for us, some of our bench players stepped up and helped our cause and helped us get back in the basketball game. I told my players we’re not the type of team that one or two players carry us,” he said.
It still wasn’t enough, though, as the Bolts fell to the Batang Pier, 126-123, in double overtime.
“Everybody has to be on top of their games every night and that didn’t happen tonight,” he said. “You got to give a lot of credit to my players for coming back after being down, but you have to pass the credit to GlobalPort for really making the big shots when they had to down the stretch. It’s a tough game to lose.”
Failing to make a winning streak, Black couldn’t help but feel frustrated with the team’s inconsistent play.
“There’s no solution other than working hard in practice and try to win games. We’re just like any other team that is trying to get wins. That’s basically what we’re trying to do,” he said.
“I’m not happy with the fact that we lost tonight but at the same time, I’m happy we came back from a large deficit and played tough down the stretch. We got to get back to the drawing board and put a lot of focus and emphasis on guys getting ready to play.”