Photo by Tristan Tamayo/ INQUIRER.net
Coach Leo Austria couldn’t help but regard San Miguel’s 96-106 defeat to Blackwater on Friday as “the worst loss” in his coaching career in the PBA.
Coming in as heavy favorites, the Beermen were left in a pile of heap following a waxing hot performance from the the Elite, who went 13-of-25 from three to drop the upset axe.
Austria acknowledged that part of his side’s demise was complacency, feeling that Blackwater will be easy pickings for the defending three-time all-Filipino champion.
“Maybe we’re so complacent because we thought that Blackwater was easy to beat. But I keep on telling them that this is a very dangerous team. It’s our fault because we’re not able to do what we’re supposed to do. We should attribute this loss to overconfidence,” he said.
Austria was dismayed by his side’s 18 turnovers, which led to 32 turnover points for the Elite, something which he believes is the perfect encapsulation of the Beermen’s listless effort.
“I told them that whatever game plan we have, whatever we achieved in the past, if we won’t put the effort, we can’t beat any team,” the three-time Coach of the Year said.
At 6-2, San Miguel is still ahead of the pack as it sits at joint first place with Magnolia and Alaska.
Still, Austria knows that these last three games will be crucial if the Beermen wants to end up with a twice-to-beat advantage in the quarterfinals, starting in their game against the Aces next Saturday in Batangas.
“The mindset is we should win in these last three games. We know what can happen and that’s why I’m putting an emphasis in our game against Alaska. That will be the most crucial point for us to get into the top two,” he said.