Photo by Randolph B. Leongson/ INQUIRER.net
LUCENA — Though coach Leo Austria’s ancestral home is just in nearby Sariaya, the Quezon Convention Center here in his home province hasn’t been that good for him in his past outings.
The two-time Coach of the Year awardee is 0-2 here, both of which were Finals games with San Miguel, a fact that isn’t lost on Austria.
“Every time I coach here, we always lose,” said the jovial mentor in Filipino.
The Beermen first lost to Alaska, 82-75, in the 2016 Philippine Cup Finals before falling to Ginebra in a tough 124-118 overtime this past 2017 Philippine Cup championship duel.
But despite those pair of defeats, things still went his way in the end as San Miguel emerged as the champion in both of those series.
With that optimistic outlook, Austria seeks to finally nab his first victory as a coach in Quezon when he calls the shots for the Luzon All-Stars when they tussle against Gilas Pilipinas on Friday.
“There are highs and lows, and you can’t always be a loser here. Maybe the reward is just there and maybe, this is my time to finally win,” he said.
Austria has every reason to feel confident as he will be having a stacked squad from the North, led by Calvin Abueva, Jayson Castro, and Japeth Aguilar.
He will also have San Miguel stars Arwind Santos, Marcio Lassiter, and Alex Cabagnot at his disposal, together with Paul Lee, LA Tenorio, Ranidel de Ocampo, Mark Caguioa, Jay Washington, and Stanley Pringle.
“We really have a star-studded team, so I hope it will be a good show for all,” said Austria.