GETTING an earful from a coach certainly affects one's psyche in a game.
But for Joshua Fontanilla, he used it as his fuel to deliver the goods for St. Clare College-Virtual Reality.
After coach Jinino Manansala chided him on the bench in the first half, the 20-year-old guard responded with a fourth quarter to remember, leading his side to a 92-78 shocker over Go for Gold-CSB to usher their campaign in the 2019 PBA D-League on Thursday.
"Nape-pressure lang po eh. Siguro nandoon yung eagerness na manalo," he said of the exchange with his coach.
Fontanilla dropped 15 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter, while also collecting four steals, three rebounds, two assists, and two blocks in what is easily his breakout game in the developmental ranks.
His performance was more than enough to make up for the subpar performance from Irvin Palencia as he willingly stepped into the spotlight when the Saints needed him the most.
"Kailangan po eh, kasi kailangan po namin ng go-to guy, so kailangan lahat po mag-step up," he said.
Fontanilla also didn't deny that the duel posed as a challenge for the NAASCU champions as St. Clare proved that it belonged in a stage as big as the PBA D-League with some of the best teams in the UAAP and the NCAA.
"Yun yung biggest challenge sa amin eh, yung kumalaban ng mga mas angat sa amin," he said. "Iisa lang naman po goal natin dito, mapunta po sa pro league. Kaya sa amin, susubukan naming abutin ang kaya namin hangga't nagtutulungan kami."
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