PBA: Tyler Bey says matchup with Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson a ‘great experience’
Magnolia import Tyler Bey and TNT reinforcement Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines—When Magnolia faced TNT in the elimination round of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup, import Tyler Bey bested Quincy Miller to give the Hotshots the victory.
Now in the quarterfinals, Bey had to go up with Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson and for whatever it’s worth, he said the showdown had been a “great experience.”
“It was a great experience. I have a lot of respect for every player in TNT but he’s an OG in the game and his brother’s a great player. I got a lot of respect just from competing with him and I look forward to competing against guys like that and it’s a learning experience,” said the Hotshots’ import after their 109-94 victory against Tropang Giga at Philsports Arena on Wednesday.
“I’m just blessed to be here, to play the game and be in this team with an amazing coaching staff. They prepared me for him and each player on the team so it was a great experience.”
Bey dominated in the win with a monster double-double of 41 points and 13 rebounds with five steals and three blocks to match.
Tyler Bey sparks Magnolia Hotshots into the PBA Commissioner’s Cup semifinals. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
Hollis-Jefferson on the other end had a sensational game as well, flirting with a triple-double to the tune of 27 points, 11 assists and nine boards.
Their matchup was the definition of “head-to-head” with Bey coming out victorious.
To make the victory sweeter, the former Dallas Maverick made history by tying with Alvin Patrimonio for most made free throws without a miss in franchise history.
His performance on the stripe and in general, he said, was bred from the lessons he learned in Magnolia’s last outing against Meralco.
“I feel like I just learned from the last game against Meralco. It was a physical game and I was frustrated. I just needed to learn how to handle adversity, talked to coach and it kept my energy up, my teammates kept my energy up. I’m a big part of my team and I know I have a big responsibility. I just feel like I just stepped up mental-wise and I’m just trying to keep it going.”
“Today was fun. I got my composure and for me, it’s just learning how to handle the physicality and play through non or bad calls. I worked on my free throws a lot in the past couple of days and it just showed up today.”
The Hotshots await the winner of the Meralco-Phoenix series which reaches its climax on Sunday at Mall of Asia Arena in a do-or-die affair.
