San Miguel’s June Mar Fajardo attacks the post defense of Ginebra’s Greg Slaughter in Game 1 of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals at the Araneta Coliseum.
INQUIRER
PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals
A proper mindset would keep the Barangay Ginebra Kings calm, and that could give them a chance to make it two in a row in the PBA Commissioner Cup finals.
That’s what in coach Tim Cone’s mind ahead of Game Two of their best-of-seven title showdown with the San Miguel Beermen at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
“It’s about mindset. We know they will make adjustments. We should not panic. We have to stay calm as we go along,” said Cone as they brace for SMB’s strong fightback from a 99-127 rout when they clash again today.
“But we’re not coming out doing the same thing either. We’ll try to continue keeping them off balance,” Cone added.
The Kings played an awesome game spearheaded by Justin Brownlee’s 42 points as they pulled off Ginebra’s biggest win in PBA finals in 11 years.
Curiously, Ginebra scored its most lopsided win in PBA finals against San Miguel Beer itself, 146-111, in Game Four of the 2007 Philippine Cup finale.
Cone said the win gave them an added amount of confidence, but it could well be a rallying point for the Beermen, on their part.
“All we did was stir up the beehive,” said Cone.
“They’re a veteran team. They’ve been to these wars so many times. And the most about the finals is resilience, how you come back, and we know the resilience of this team,” he added.
It could really be a lot different game today.
“They’re going to come back big time. We’re expecting a real forceful game from them,” said Cone.
“Definitely a different game from this game. We know that they don’t want to go down 2-0 just like everybody else. We expect them to play physical, defend, play hard on defense, and that’s pretty much what they are going to do,” said Brownlee.
Limiting June Mar
For GSM, something to build on was their good job on June Mar Fajardo Friday.
“Nobody can stop June Mar unless you double him. But we somehow limited him. That’s what you can ask for. If you can do that, that’s a huge bonus and luxury other teams don’t have except us,” said Cone.
“From the start, we really match up well with them. But it doesn’t mean we’re going to match up and beat them. We just match up with them, and we do have some confidence in that regard,” Cone added.
Greg Slaughter stood his ground, collecting 11 points, seven rebounds, three blocks, two assists and one steal as against Fajardo’s 13 markers and 12 boards.