The first game of the 2017 PBA Philippine Cup Finals ended in a blowout with San Miguel coming out on top, 109-82 over Barangay Ginebra.
Just six minutes into the game, the Beermen already found themselves on top by fifteen points. Towards the end of the third period, the lead had already ballooned to thirty six.
San Miguel head coach Leo Austria, who has been criticized for pushing his starters to their limits during the semifinals, took advantage of the situation and rested his key players.
“Once na-secure na namin ang panalo, ang mga key players, pinahinga ko na and that is a precious time for them dahil alam naman natin nangyari sa semifinal series, those 5 players played forty plus minutes yung average nila and I was criticized for doing that to my players,” said Austria.
June Mar Fajardo, who has skipped the Beermen's practice prior to the finals due to a flu, was able to play in game 1 posting 17 points, eight rebounds and three blocks in less than 23 minutes of playing time.
Sponsored content:
The rest of the Beermen's starters played below 30 minutes the entire game, a difference of 10 minutes from their previous game averages during the semifinals.
Team captain Arwind Santos treats the short rest as luxury since the team will be travelling for four hours, after workout, the following day to Lucena City for game 2 of the PBA Finals.
“Malaking bagay na nakapag-pahinga kami pagkatapos bukas ang haba ng biyahe namin – mga four hours yun – tapos may practice pa at shooting pa.,” said Santos.
“Dito pumapasok yung professionalism mo na kung alam mong pagod ka, kailangan samantalahin mo ang pahinga. Napaka-importante yun lalo na kapag ang kalaban mo kaya ka takbuhan – kailangan handa ka talaga.”
Game 2 of the 2017 PBA Philippine Cup Finals will be played February 26, Sunday, 6:30pm at the Quezon Convention Center in Lucena City.
Sponsored content:
Story by: Ernest Hernandez
Photo by: Peter Baltazar
