AMA Online Education coach Mark Herrera blasted his wards for being complacent but was still glad they regained composure late to survive a scare over winless Blustar in the PBA D-League Aspirants’ Cup on Tuesday.
Without top gun Jeron Teng, the Titans looked like a subpar, inferior team compared to the cellar-dwelling Dragons early on. But while AMA squeaked past Blustar, 83-78, despite trailing by eight in the fourth quarter, Herrera was not pleased with what he saw from the Titans.
Herrera admitted that Teng's presence was sorely missed especially on the offensive end, where the former King Archer leads the league with 26 points per game. Fortunately for Herrera, veterans Juami Tiongson, Jay-R Taganas, and Ryan Arambulo conspired down the stretch as the team mounted a 12-1 run that finished off the Dragons.
[See AMA rallies late to turn back Blustar for third straight win]
"Syempre na-miss namin presence niya, lalo sa scoring," said Herrera of Teng, who also adds 8.7 rebounds, and 4.3 assists to his averages.
"Sabi ko sa kanila, pride lang yan at composure (nung nalamangan kami). Kaya naman layuan kung gusto kaso nag-relax. May kaunting halong yabang. Buti naka-recover kami."
Herrera hopes this will serve as lesson for the Titans before they take on Wangs on Monday.
"Every game naman sinasabi ko sa kanila na hindi pwede i-underestimate mga kalaban kahit itong Blustar," he said.
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