RATHER than be sorry, Mark Barroca considers Magnolia’s loss to Blackwater as a warm up for the Hotshots in the coming PBA Governors Cup playoffs.
Mark Barroca on Blackwater vs Magnolia
With the league-leading Hotshots falling prey to the previously winless Bossing, 101-100, Barroca said the setback more or less, should get the team ready on what to expect once the quarterfinals kick off by next week.
As the top-seeded team, Magnolia enjoys a twice-to-beat advantage against the no. 8 seeded team, whose mentality could be likened to the way Blackwater played
“Ito yung team (Blackwater) na sabihin na lang natin no. 8 (sa playoffs). So ito yung magamit naming experience going to the playoffs, kasi ganun din ang mentality ng no. 8 na team,” said the veteran guard.
“Kaya next time, dapat matuto kami. Natalo man kami, at least nagising kami going to the playoffs.”
The 35-year-old Barroca finished with a career-high 27 points in the loss against Blackwater as he willed his team to come back from an 83-94 deficit with 4:20 to play to take the lead, 100-99, with 48 seconds left on a driving layup.
But a steal by Paul Desiderio on the former Gilas Pilipinas stalwart with 11 seconds left led to a Barkley Eboña basket that gave the Bossing the lead for good.
“Yung approach namin dapat hindi ganito,” said Barroca, citing how the Hotshots played flat in the middle of the second quarter that allowed Blackwater to take a 48-45 lead at the break.
“Lalo na kung playoffs, iba na yung sitwasyon doon,” added the Far Eastern University alum, who suffered a slight cut on his left eyelid following a head collision with Blackwater counterpart JVee Casio.
It’s not the way Magnolia (9-2) wanted to end its elimination round campaign, but it’s a major lesson learned for Barroca and the Hotshots that they’ll take to heart when the playoff wars begin.
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