PBA: Cariaso, Aces brought ‘1-1’ mentality in the game against Magnolia

MANILA, Philippines – The Alaska Aces scored their big win at the 2020 PBA Philippine Cup on Saturday, when they held off the Magnolia Hotshots for an 87-81 victory at the AUF Gym in Angeles City, Pampanga.

The hard-won victory snapped a two-game slide, putting the Aces at 1-2 in the All-Filipino tournament and taking their campaign off the ground.

However, for Alaska coach Jeff Cariaso and the Aces, their mentality heading into the contest was quite different. Rather than thinking they were 0-2, the team believed they deserved a 1-1 record.

“To be honest with you, we approached this match thinking we were 1-1,” Cariaso said after Saturday’s win.

“I say that because we feel like we should have won that first game,” he explained.

Alaska’s first game was a 100-95 loss to TNT Tropang Giga, a game that saw them squander a double-digit lead in the first quarter and give up 45 points to TNT swingman Roger Pogoy. His run down the stretch failed, as did his defense when Jayson Castro made all the right plays for Tropang Giga down the stretch.

However, his performance against a powerful TNT team gave Cariaso a lot of hope.

“The mistakes we made were our mistakes, things that we could control,” Cariaso said. “When you approach it that way, compared to being 0-2, I think your way of thinking is different.”

“So, you know, like I said, you walk into this game and you know, a very well trained and talented Magnolia team, and they have superstars on their team that we should be really concerned about.”

“And being able to step up and be better defensively was, I think, my best interpretation of the game tonight.”

Cariaso was particularly proud of his defense over Magnolia’s Paul Lee, who was limited to 14 points on 4 of 16 shooting from the field. In his previous game, Lee capped the Hotshots’ comeback against NLEX with a four-point play, but the Aces refused to give him a chance to break their hearts as well.

The coach said it was a team effort, with Mike DiGregorio, Robbie Herndon, MJ Ayaay and even JVee Casio watching minutes against Lee.

“There really isn’t one person who can defend Paul Lee,” Cariaso said. “Our purpose (was) to get some guys to protect him, guys that have gotten a little rested and aren’t tired because tagging Paul is, you know, you have to be ready.”

“A lot of his offense really revolves around him. So we just wanted to mix him up a bit, and I’m happy with the way the guys performed.”

With their 1-2 list, the Aces are smack in the middle of the league standings heading into a showdown against Blackwater Elite on Tuesday. Blackwater has been one of the surprises of the bubble, with new coach Nash Racela leading them to a 2-1 record.

Cariaso says the key for them is that their players continue to respond to their challenge, which is to improve in each game.

“I challenge the guys, getting into the game tonight that we just need to get better at what we do. And the guys showed it tonight,” he said after his win over Magnolia.

“Defensively, they were much better than in the first two games, so we only hope to improve as the conference progresses,” he added.