Beermen determined on grand slam aspirations
We don’t care who’s blocking our path — Leo Austria
GRAND slam seeking San Miguel Beer is determined to complete a historic three-peat this season, but the most dominant team in the past three seasons knows it won’t be an easy task.
In the ongoing PBA Governors’ Cup, a few teams had shown their intentions of stopping the Beermen on their tracks.
NLEX is an up and coming team and shown remarkable improvement this conference under general manager/ head coach Yeng Guiao. The Road Warriors had remained undefeated in the tournament after four games to gain solo leadership.
Then, there’s Meralco and Star, two teams which consistently figured in the playoffs the past three conferences.
The Bolts, who finished runnerup to defending champion Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings in the same tournament last season, had racked up three straight wins and played every bit like a title contender behind comebacking import Allen Durham.
A semifinalist in the last two conferences under head coach Chito Victolero, Star won its first two games in contrasting fashions and appeared to be looking good for making another push.
Then, of course, there’s the Gin Kings, who after losing their first game to the Bolts, had bounced back with big games, winning their last two outings, including their 120-99 bashing of Kia Picanto.
San Miguel Beermen head coach Leo Austria knows right from the start how tough the road is leading to the grand slam.
“This is just the start of the conference. I’m looking at Ginebra and TNT as the contenders. Of course, Meralco is really playing well and they have the experience playing with Allen Durham. NLEX is also playing well, it could motivate the team. They’re playing inspired basketball. Star, too is also a contender. All these teams had made it to the Final four in the last two conferences,” added Mr. Austria.
But for the key players of the Beermen, they’re not much concern on which team they would go up against while pursuing the grand slam.
“We’re taking it game by game. We’re not looking at Ginebra or NLEX. Today, we’re looking at TNT and Friday we’re looking at Star. It’s a game by game basis for us. We’re trying to win as many games in the eliminations and when the playoff comes, we’ll tackle that obstacle,” said San Miguel Beermen guard Chris Ross, the Best Player of the Conference in the Commissioner’s Cup.
For Arwind Santos, a grand slam would serve more as motivation rather than a distraction for the team.
“Not everyone is given the chance to win a grand slam. It’s now right in front of us,” added Mr. Santos. “I’m not looking at the performance of the other teams. We’re focusing on our goal of winning a grand slam. Whichever team will oppose our grand slam aspirations, we’re not worried about that. The only team that could beat us is our team itself. We don’t care who’s blocking our path.” —