The call of the moment in the aroused PBA turf is for the San Miguel Beermen to stand up and make it a championship series.
A more sensational cry says the celebrated Beermen must get out of bed.
Firm, solid and sharp Terrence Jones said he took it as his main task to make things difficult for the powerhouse San Miguel team. The prodigious TNT import did not find it hard to carry out his self-assigned task.
The San Miguel Beer team also made it very difficult for itself with a surprisingly soft and sleepy stand at the start of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals on Sunday.
What was drummed up to be a titanic clash slipped early into a waltzing loose encounter.
Jones, with 41 points and 12 rebounds, said defense did it for TNT, stressing they disallowed foes from getting into a scoring groove.
It was also obvious San Miguel made it easy and smooth for the KaTropa, willingly yielding the floor and allowing an early 18-0 slash that saw the KaTropa squad soaring to an early 20-point lead—and never looking back.
There was a ready post-game claim which said the Beermen were tired. San Miguel had only a day’s rest before clashing for the Commissioner’s Cup title against TNT, which had a couple of days off beforehand.
What a difference does an extra rest day make? Chris McCullough, the San Miguel import, said that, frankly, San Miguel could have competed a lot better. There was no championship fervor in the opening match of the highly anticipated championship series, no thanks to the soft, sputtering San Miguel Beermen. There was indeed great expectation all over, with fans hoping for what could be the start of a monumental conglomerate rivalry in the PBA.
The towering stature of the main rivals makes for a real hardcourt war.
The hungrier TNT squad sizzled and made it a game-long picnic.
As expected, San Miguel coach Leo Austria was quick to explain they would adjust in Game 2.
That indeed sounds like the theme of a tired script.
Anyway, there were those who said that, tired and fireless, San Miguel had opted to take it soft and lazy.
There was also suspicion that the Beermen just allowed themselves to be caught napping repeatedly.
There’s nothing else left for the San Miguel squad to do but strike back. It cannot afford a second straight flop.
It’s in their hands to show that the brand of fabled PBA rivalry of old is not totally gone. The main ingredients are there.