Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines—Magnolia coach Chito Victolero had a simple marching order for his charges against San Miguel Beer in Game 5 of the PBA Philippine Finals: Weather the storm.
The Hotshots did that and more on Friday night at the Big Dome, with its veteran guard Mark Barroca leading the way.
Barroca hit a midrange jumper at the buzzer to move the Hotshots on the cusp of the crown and push the reigning four-time conference champions to the brink of elimination.
“At halftime, I told them that there will be a moment in the second half that San Miguel mounts a run,” Victolero said in Filipino.
True enough, the Beermen rallied from 13 points down to put the Hotshots within striking range. A brief exchange of buckets ensued with Terrence Romeo knotting the affair at 86.
Then Barroca’s moment came.
“We were talking during that final timeout. We just want a chance at a last shot, and we were bent on getting it,” the veteran guard said in Filipino.
Quite fittingly, it was all Magnolia needed. It was, after all, their mantra all conference long.
“There’s nobody believing in us. Just us,” he added. “Going into this conference, we’ve been underdogs. Quarterfinals, semifinals.”
“But whenever we believe, good things happen. That’s why our battle cry is ‘Believe.’”
Magnolia had faith that it would survive San Miguel’s spirited comeback attempts and win Game 5.
The Hotshots hope that belief will be stronger than ever come Sunday night when they shoot for the title in Game 6.
But as far as closeout games go, both Victolero and Barroca know it’s not going to be easy.
“We know [the Beermen] are not going down easily,” the mentor said. “We just have to [do it again].”
“To keep it close and give us a fighting chance,” Victolero added.