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The last time Meralco had five wins in the PBA core tournament, the Bolts made the playoffs. They scored their fifth win Thursday night, but coach Norman Black was quick to quell any mounting excitement.
“Nobody makes it to the quarterfinals and stops there,” he said.
“I don’t even know if a fifth win is enough,” Black added after the Bolts fended off Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, 85-78, in the Philippine Cup at the University of Angeles Foundation powered by Smart 5G.
There were reasons to celebrate Thursday’s victory.
“I was very, very happy with our defense. Our offense was clicking against his zone, ”Black said. “In the third quarter we were hitting and executing very, very well.”
Baser Amer led that round for Meralco, scoring seven of his 14-point total in that span and helping the Bolts beat the Painters there, 28-7.
Rain or Shine threatened to stun Meralco (5-3) in the latter part of the contest, taking out key baskets from Norbert Torres, Mark Borboran and rookies Adrian Wong and Vince Tolentino.
Fortunately for Black and the Bolts, they put together a cushion comfortable enough to withstand the late surge of their enemies.
“We had such a big advantage that at least we could win the basketball game,” Black said.
James Yap led the way for painters with 18 points, while Beau Belga and Torres each finished with 11, while painters fell to 4-3.
In a previous game, Magnolia’s coach Chito Victolero also took note of very familiar numbers after his Hotshots defeated Terrafirma Dyip, 103-89.
“Last year, we experienced going 0-3, then 1-4. Now, we also went 1-4. In fact, I even checked with [PBA statistician] Fidel [Mangonon III] to be sure, ”he said with a smile.
The importance of last year? The Hotshots reached the Finals and pushed San Miguel Beer down a tightrope in a seventh game before settling for runner-up honors.
So instead of looking ahead, Victolero looks in his rearview mirror to make sense of the present.
“We continue to review that. Actually, that’s what we keep discussing with the team: that we’ve struggled, that we’ve experienced this before. Now all we have to do is focus on the present. “
Looking ahead can be exhausting, especially for a team that is looming again in a row.
“It’s hard to think of [the back-to-backs] anyway, ”Victolero said after winning in consecutive rounds from the game against TNT last Wednesday.
Victolero, like NLEX coach Yeng Guiao, has taken a daily approach within the bubble. So far, it has worked wonders for both the now 3-5 Road Warriors and the Hotshots (3-4).
Black has enough days to figure out how to keep winning, with the TNT powerhouse taking on the Bolts next. But some answers, he already found in the Rain or Shine fight on Thursday.
“Obviously, turnover is not a good thing. You don’t want to give the other team more possessions than you have. ”
And that’s what Black hopes Meralco can rectify ahead of Saturday night’s showdown with Tropang Giga.
“[That’s] something we have to fix, ”he said.
Only after scoring six, or even more, wins, Black said, can he begin planning the next stage.
“The objective is not finished yet. We have not reached the goal, which is to make the playoffs. And then even after we get to the playoffs, it’s all about trying to get to the next level, “he said.
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