ANTIPOLO – TNT coach Chot Reyes said the Tropang GIGA were still very much capable of winning the game against Phoenix on Sunday even in the absence of Mikey Williams.
Reyes said TNT had the manpower to overcome Phoenix but the only problem was that the Tropang GIGA didn’t play as desired for the whole 48 minutes.
See TNT warns 'multiple absentee' Mikey Williams of heavier penalties
Williams missed the Tropang GIGA’s 91-88 defeat against the Fuel Masters after the team sanctioned him for being absent in practice on Saturday.
Reyes rued the team scoring just seven points in the first period, putting it in the back foot before losing by three on free throws by Phoenix rookies Encho Serrano and Tyler Tio.
“We lost the game at the start,” said Reyes. “We couldn’t score seven points in the first quarter.”
“Like I said, our problem is we haven’t played a full 48 minutes and if we can’t play a full 48 minutes, we can’t win any ballgames. ‘Yan ang parating mangyayari. We are always going to put ourselves in a position where it’s always going to be a tough game for us.”
Calvin Oftana waxed hot in the third quarter to lead the comeback to eventually finish with a team-high 27 points. TNT though was unable to maintain its 88-85 lead as Phoenix scored the last six points of the match to lose the match.
For the Phoenix game, Reyes said the TNT coaching staff was focused on the task at hand, and not on the Williams situation.
“We don’t dwell on those things. We only worry about the players who are here. Those who aren’t here, there’s nothing we can do about that,” said Reyes.
“He is not here. We focus on the players who are here. We have enough to win games. Doesn’t matter who is here. We should be able to go and pay 48 minutes. But we aren’t able to do so. That’s our problem,” said Reyes.