Marcio Lassiter
Right in the middle of all the tension after Game 4 of the PBA Philippine Cup Finals, Marcio Lassiter looked the same player that he has always been throughout his career.
He was silent—no celebration, no angst and complaints—despite moving within a win from his 11th PBA championship.
“I think of the next play mentality,” Lassiter told the Inquirer when asked of his demeanor after the Beermen notched a 105-91 win over TNT.
“I’m not too high, not too low and that’s kind of what helped me throughout my career,” he said. “We’re veterans. We know how to control it and when it gets too much, our game does the talking.”
The Beermen took a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series, and almost immediately after the buzzer Sunday night, teammate Chris Ross was quick to attend to Tropang 5G big man Poy Erram, who gallantly played through a sprained ankle.
Instead of seeing it as a sincere act of kindness, TNT team manager Jojo Lastimosa shooed Ross back to the Beermen’s side.
There was also the Lastimosa-Jericho Cruz incident after that.
But while all those altercations were happening, Lassiter was in his own little space. Not that he wasn’t a factor. He finished with 10 points built on two triples.
“It’s very emotional. This series is the finals. It’s for all the marbles,” the former Gilas sniper said. “This is what we play for, a championship.
It will be the same for “Super Marcio” come Wednesday, when the Beermen look to close out the grand slam seeking TNT in Game 5 of the Finals at Araneta Coliseum.
But for sure, people will see him celebrate when that happens. INQ