The class was in session in Game 1 of the PBA Governors’ Cup Finals, and Barangay Ginebra rookie RJ Abarrientos acknowledged some harsh lessons handed to him from one of the prominent names in Philippine basketball.

“For me, marami pang kakainin na bigas (A Filipino phrase meaning ‘I have so much to learn’),” Abarrientos said after the Gin Kings were handed a 104-88 loss by the TNT Tropang Giga in Sunday’s series opener before 11,021 fans at Ynares Center in Antipolo City.

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Jayson Castro schooled Abarrientos in Game 1, capitalizing on defensive switches to keep scoring over the former Korean Basketball League Rookie of the Year with outside shots or attacks to the basket that resulted in conversions or fouls drawn.

Castro scored 12 of his 14 points in the third quarter, most of which came after hunting down Abarrientos’ defense, helping the Tropang Giga pull away and dash any chances of the Gin Kings completing a comeback.

Shooting woes

Abarrientos has talked about idolizing Castro during his teenage years, and he didn’t hide his excitement facing the two-time Fiba Asia Mythical Five member and five-time PBA Best Player of the Conference award.

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And after finally getting that chance, Abarrientos was impressed with how Castro can still take charge even at 38 years old.

That being said, the period of starstruck is over. For Abarrientos, it’s time to man up.

“It’s really impressive how he can still have that pace even at his age,” said Abarrientos. “But that’s the Jayson Castro that RJ Abarrientos needs to overcome.”

Abarrientos’ defensive challenges highlighted the collective struggles of Ginebra against a TNT side that leaned on a hot start and kept its lead until the end.

Ginebra also had its woes shooting the ball from beyond the nearest arc, missing its first 18 threes before ending up with a 2-of-21 clip while also going 1-of-5 from four. The long bomb was among the reasons why the Gin Kings made it to this point of the conference.

“We weren’t locked in the whole game and they beat us up individually,” said Cone. “We’ll see what we can do about it.” INQ