MANILA, Philippines—NorthPort big man Prince Ibeh is eager to prove that he can still be better for the Batang Pier in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup.
Ibeh wasn’t that explosive in the offensive end but was a stable defensive presence for the Batang Pier with 19 points, 13 rebounds, three steals, and two blocks as they won their first game of the conference, 103-81, against Alaska.
The 24-year-old center said he expects more from himself, echoing what his head coach Pido Jarencio said.
“I want to see more from myself, my expectations are higher than the performance I had today,” said Ibeh Wednesday at Ynares Center in Antipolo.
Jarencio said Ibeh, who stands at 6-foot-10, was already an intimidating presence underneath and he believes his young reinforcement can still improve as the conference goes.
“He’s intimidating inside with his long arms and he’s getting those rebounds,” said Jarencio in Filipino. “When you give him a drop pass he can finish and I think he’ll still improve.”
“I can see what he can do for the team and that’s what’s important. His rebounding is the number one thing for us, second is his presence and that is the intimidation factor. Last is he can finish underneath no matter how he gets the ball,” added Jarencio.
Ibeh said his main goal during the game against the Aces was give it everything on defense while also being careful with his fouls.
“I was just really trying to focus on maintaining a high-level effort and staying solid defensively and I was kind of watching my fouls,” said Ibeh who got called with just two fouls in 40 minutes of play.
“When I’m on the floor it’s going to be a different story in terms of opposing teams getting easy baskets,” added Ibeh. “Whatever they run I know I have the ability to take them out of that especially if their import is their focal point. That’s something I pride myself in.”