Coaching war evident in PBA Govs’ Finals

IN my last column, I said: “If Brownlee bombs out anew in Game 2, make that 2-0 for Meralco. Even if Tenorio fires 100 points.”

I said that because Brownlee (Justin), Barangay Ginebra’s import, scored only 17 points when the Gin Kings yielded a 114-109 overtime loss to Meralco in Game 1.

One game before that, Brownlee banged home 46 points as he powered Ginebra to the best-ofseven finals of the PBA Governors’ Cup past defending champion San Miguel Beer. A drop of 29 points. Brownlee had a dayoff?

Also in that Game 5 decider, Tenorio, Ginebra’s most productive point-guard, scored a career-high 36 points.

Add Brownlee’s 46 to Tenorio’s 36, that’d be 82 points from just two Gins. Truly, with those huge numbers, Ginebra seemed set to seize the PBA Governors’ Cup?

Seemingly, yes. But not so fast.

Because even as Tenorio reprised his game-winning feat in the ousting of SMB when he banked a shot for a 102 deadlock that sent the Ginebra-Meralco Game 1 to overtime, the Gins would next inexplicably fold up.

In overtime, Ginebra merely made 7 points— just 4 points in the first 3-1/2 minutes—and subsequently lost after it got overrun by Meralco’s total of 12 overtime points.

Brownlee was a nonfactor in Game 1, yes, but he was a totally different animal in Game 2, when he fired 32 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to anchor Ginebra’s 82-79 victory.

His Game 2 output was more than 15 points over his puny 17 in Game 1, helping force a 1-1 tie in the best-of-seven series.

He went on to win “Best Player of The Game” honors although it was Sol Mercado’s putback off a Tenorio miss that gave Ginebra an 81-79 bubble with 28 seconds left.

Then Tenorio’s free throw secured an 82-79 victory as Meralco twice missed overtime-sending threes, including one by the usually deadly Allen Durham despite having a clear shot from the right quartercourt.

Ginebra coach Tim Cone’s move to make Mercado guard Durham was a master stroke: From 46 points in Game 1, Durham managed only 22 in Game 2.

Cone is in his 30th title appearance, Norman Black 18th.

Clearly this early, the series is fast becoming a coaching war. In Wednesday’s Game 3, it is Black’s move to counter Cone’s call on Mercado to handcuff Durham again.