ASI Taulava managed to come up with a fine performance at midweek, even with his mind not entirely focused on basketball. The gentle giant continued his good run of form on Saturday, finally free of any worries.
In between, the San Miguel slotman celebrated the birth of his fourth child.
The 40-year-old Taulava admitted his mind was still in Manila when San Miguel left for Bangkok to take on the Rev Thailand Slammers as his wife Anna May was getting ready to give birth.
A true pro, Taulava displayed another fine outing and came up with 18 points along with crucial conversions in the fourth that led to a 78-70 win over the Slammers.
Their fourth daughter finally arrived on Friday, and a day later Taulava matched his previous point production as the Beermen extended their winning streak to 12 with a 71-69 victory over the Saigon Heat.
After the game, Taulava revealed all the hard work was inspired by his new baby Samantha.
“I really dedicated this game to my fourth child Samantha,” Taulava said in a TV interview. “I want to dedicate the game to her and my wife for taking care of the family.”
“It’s been a rough two days for me. My mind was here in Manila. But lucky for me, my mother-in-law was able to come and stay with (my wife),” said Taulava.
Good thing for Taulava was that he got back in Manila just in time to see the birth of his new baby on Friday. And the joy of the birth of another baby translated into another stellar performance against the Heat.
With the Beermen still missing the presence of point guard Chris Banchero, Taulava took over the scoring cudgels churning 18 points, eight rebounds and one block during a closely-fought game against the Heat.
“When I found out that my baby was born and my wife got out of the recovery room, my mind was into playing basketball,” said Taulava.
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