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Frustration was evident on the face of LA Tenorio on the heels of Ginebra’s 78-74 loss to Star on Thursday.
After turning the ball over from an inbounds pass from Scottie Thompson with 15.7 seconds remaining, the veteran playmaker could only kick the baseline in anger as the Gin Kings dropped Game 1 of their best-of-7 semifinals duel.
But Tenorio also blasted his side for not coming up with a solid enough effort to match Star’s.
READ: Lee to the rescue as Star nips Ginebra, grabs 1-0 lead
“There was no sense of urgency for us in this game. It’s more on effort. It’s not about the gameplan anymore, it’s about the effort,” he said. “You saw that there they got the loose balls and offensive rebounds. In the playoffs, it’s really about effort.”
Star corralled 17 offensive rebounds to Ginebra’s 14, but the more glaring difference was the Gin Kings’ apparent clumsiness with the rock, turning the ball over 24 times.
Tenorio, who was limited to just eight points, six assists, and four rebounds, said that the main focus for Ginebra was to was limit the Hotshots’ high-octane backcourt–which the Kings failed to do.
READ: Lee, Star bracing for tougher defensive battle vs Ginebra
Paul Lee fired 18 points and five rebounds, Mark Barroca got 17 markers, four boards, and two assists, while the trio of Jio Jalalon, Justin Melton, and Rome dela Rosa combined for 13 points and 10 rebounds in helping Star come away with the victory.
“It’s hard because they have lots of guards and they’re all threats. Our game plan is to stop the guards of Star. It’s difficult, but we really have to be smart in everything that we do. It’s not just about playing hard, it’s about playing smart,” he said.
Luckily, Ginebra has plenty of time to recover with still a long series to go. Game 2 is on Saturday at Mall of Asia Arena.
“We’ll see what adjustments we could do. It was a tough loss for us, but again, it’s a series and it’s a game of adjustments,” he said. “Next game, we’ll make our adjustments and do the little things. We didn’t do the things we did in our last game and that’s why we we’re not successful in this game.”