Friday night’s game between NLEX and Magnolia ended with the winning team feeling a sense of excitement and even disbelief over the rare achievement of gaining a twice-to-beat advantage in the PBA Philippine Cup playoffs.
And coach Jong Uichico summed up those feelings when he suddenly became speechless in the middle of the postgame press conference that dissected the Road Warriors’ 107-99 victory at Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
“I’m just surprised at how the team is playing,” Uichico said. “They’re really performing well and I’m just happy that they’re winning and the work they’ve been putting in during practices are paying off.
“It’s hard if you keep working without being rewarded,” he went on. “But at least, they get rewarded for their hard work with the number of games that we’ve won.”
The win enabled NLEX, a team that usually has the middle-of-the-pack status as its ceiling, climbing up to the solo lead at 8-2, with a chance at securing the No. 1 seed with a win over struggling NorthPort to close out the eliminations.
On the flip side were the Hotshots dealing with concerns not just with their twice-to-beat hopes, but also their own safety.
Shortly after the loss, William Navarro, Paul Lee and Ian Sangalang became subjects of death threats online by a certain account on Instagram, with the netizen saying that he plans to do something unsavory to the players and their families after claiming to have lost a big bet.
The PBA immediately took action and had the Magnolia trio escorted out of the venue by in-house security. The threats from the said account have since been erased, with Lee and Navarro opting to limit those who could write in the comments section.
Blown leads
Both the league and the Hotshots were unavailable for comment at press time.
Magnolia fell to 7-3 after back-to-back losses that started against sister team Barangay Ginebra, where they blew a 10-point lead early in the fourth. This time, the Hotshots blew away a 19-point first-quarter advantage as the Road Warriors slowly chipped away at the margin.
Xyrus Torres was among those who led the comeback before main man Robert Bolick sparked a breakaway in the second half with back-to-back four-pointers, followed by some triples that broke Magnolia’s backs.
And now, Magnolia, after holding the top spot for most of the eliminations, dropped to third behind NLEX and San Miguel Beer, which, as of this writing, was aiming to improve on its 6-2 record against 6-3 Rain or Shine in Cagayan de Oro City.
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Sunday’s main offering also has twice-to-beat implications in Ginebra and TNT, which have identical 6-3 slates, squaring off at 7:30 p.m. at Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
Terrafirma plays what could be its final game in the league in the 5 p.m. match with equally struggling Blackwater. The franchise is in the process of potentially being sold to those handling the Zamboanga Valientes, depending on the progress of negotiations.
