MANILA, Philippines – Plotting defense against Barangay Ginebra has become a much more complicated task for TNT head coach Chot Reyes following the emergence of Maverick Ahanmisi and Stephen Holt.
Reyes pointed to Ahanmisi and Holt as the difference makers as the Gin Kings tied the PBA Governors’ Cup finals with a 106-92 win in Game 4 on Sunday, November 3, after seeing the Tropang Giga clinch the first two games.
Ahanmisi and Holt finished with 18 points each to give the Ginebra trio of Justin Brownlee, Japeth Aguilar, and Scottie Thompson a much-needed boost.
On top of their offensive contributions, the two also made their presence felt on the opposite end, with Ahanmisi adding 8 rebounds and 2 steals and Holt posting 5 steals while taking on Tropang Giga import Rondae Hollis-Jefferson.
“Holt is defending Rondae the whole game and he is still scoring. And Mav Ahanmisi. We know Brownlee, Scottie, and Japeth, those are given. But the game of the two guys are giving us a lot of problems,” Reyes said.
“So we have to find a solution for that. Unbelievable. My hats off to Mav and Stephen. They’re really making it very difficult for us.”
Game 4 marked the first time the Gin Kings breached the century mark in scoring after being limited to 85.7 points in the first three games.
Brownlee finally got going and netted his highest scoring performance of the best-of-seven affair with 34 points, while Aguilar and Thompson chimed in 18 and 10 points, respectively.
For Reyes, letting Ginebra have its way on offense would spell doom for a TNT side whose biggest asset is its stifling defense.
“They’re really finding their groove. They’re being able to make great reads on their offense and executing their offense well. So it is incumbent upon us to be able to play better defense,” Reyes said.
“We need some of other guys, especially our bench, to step up.”
Although the momentum has shifted to the Gin Kings’ favor, Reyes counts on his charges to bounce back as the Tropang Giga look to regain control of the series in Game 5 at the Araneta Coliseum on Wednesday, November 6.
“If you ask me at the start of the series after four games if it was 2-all, I’d take it and be happy with that. Best of three. We’re now in 0-0,” Reyes said. – Rappler.com
