An Elite acid test

Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

With a big battle ahead, Blackwater coach Aris Dimaunahan is looking back at the thing that makes his Elite click.

“I think it’s our teamwork peaking,” he told the Inquirer on Thursday. “That has been the big difference from our previous conferences. They are all happy for each other.”

The rookie mentor hopes his squad continues to make use of that contagious chemistry and its league-best offensive rating as it plunges into a series of character tests, which begin at 4:30 p.m. on Friday versus San Miguel Beer at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.

“We still have a lot to work on, though,” he added. “We need to improve on how we finish halves—quarters. In the past six games, I saw that we have a tendency to loosen our grip.”

Dimaunahan, whose squad and two other teams sit atop the PBA Commissioner’s Cup with a 5-1 record, hopes to have addressed that flaw as the Elite enter a grind that will have them battling the league’s powerhouses.

Blackwater, after the clash with the Beermen, will have Magnolia, TNT and Alaska as opponents in that order.

Asked what has been a personal key to his early success in the big boys’ league, Dimaunahan said he is merely putting together everything he has learned from topnotch coaches.

“I let the players enjoy the game, to play for each other. If you see them and the ones on the bench, they’re all having fun,” said the former Ginebra player, who made his way up through Blackwater’s coaching ranks.

“I believe I’m just blessed to go through under topnotch coaches who give their utmost to detail, who demand concentration from their players,” he added. “I’m merely putting everything I’ve picked up from each one of them.”

That exposure has given him a tempered view on how to approach situations, which he could find very useful as he goes up against a team that is known to overwhelm opponents offensively.

“We have to be ready for each and every one of them. They’re all high-caliber players,” he said of the Beermen. “We can’t possibly stop them all, so our approach is to limit them. That should give us a fighting chance.”

Meanwhile, Magnolia, the losing Philippine Cup finalist, goes up against another winless squad in NLEX in the 7 p.m. game.