Cebuano coaches speak regarding Baldwin’s reaction to Santos’ dunk

WHILE several officials bashed newly installed Gilas Pilipinas head coach Tab Baldwin for his actions after a PBA semis game, two local coaches understood where the American was coming from.
Newly appointed University of the Visayas (UV) head coach Gary Cortes and University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) mentor Jun Noel said there is an unspoken rule in “coaching ethics” that calls for a team not to score when the victory is already in the bag in the dying seconds of a game.
San Miguel Beer forward Arwind Santos apparently violated that in slamming the ball home in an already-won game, which Baldwin reacted to after the game.
The 100-87 win in Game 4 of their best-of-seven semis series booted out the Texters as the Beermen advanced to the championship round.
“Mas maayo na ‘i-dribble the ball out ’ na lang,” Cortes said. “Although kasabot sad ko na basin in the heat of the moment, giganahan ug hansak si Arwind (Santos). Pero as much as possible, dribble the ball out na lang.”
Cortes added that dribbling the ball out is also a safer way to end a game that has already been won.
“Basin nya pag-hansak nimo, matukmod pa ka or matagak, ma-injure pa ka. So avoid na lang gyud,” said Cortes, who is at the head of the Green Lancers’ resurgence after a slow start this year
Noel, a veteran of the basketball wars with his decades-long experience at the helm of several successful semi-professional teams, said he would choose to instruct his players to “play with the clock” if the win was in the bag.
“If kailangan pa mu-score, then why not? But I would rather tell my players to play with the clock,” said Noel, who once coached the Negros Slashers in the defunct Metropolitan Basketball Association.