Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
Bong Ravena has always been on his son Kiefer’s side throughout the young guard’s basketball career.
Even when the two found themselves on opposing sides when TNT faced NLEX, Ravena, an ever-supportive father, felt torn on the sidelines.
“A lot was going through my mind. First, I was excited knowing that we’ll face each other in the pros,” the elder Ravena, the former PBA sharpshooter who now serves as assistant coach at TNT, said in Filipino.
READ: TNT win no giveaway as NLEX simply played ‘terrible’
“There was anxiety. I’m thinking how he’s going to play the game and that he might end up beating us, so I’m really thinking about many things. Mixed emotions,” he added. “But I’m happy that he’s a professional now.”
Kiefer said the duel against TNT was one of the those games he was really looking forward to.
Unfortunately for the prized rookie, the game didn’t turn out the way he would’ve wanted it to be with the Road Warriors getting blown out, 101-75.
It was also one of Kiefer’s worst outings since going scoreless in his UAAP debut for the Ateneo Blue Eagles in 2011.
READ: TNT stays in playoff hunt, routs quarterfinals-bound NLEX
He only had one point, a rebound, two assists and two turnovers in 14 minutes for NLEX.
While it was a forgettable performance, Kiefer said it was also the kind of game that he must keep in mind to be a better player.
“It’s not so very often that second-generation players get chances to go up against their dads,” he said.
“He has one over me, they beat us badly and it was a bad way to lose. But I guess you have to learn from this. These are the kinds of things that can’t afford to forget so we just need to fix ourselves coming into the playoffs.“