A new injury may have slowed him down, but it didn’t take him out this time.
Calvin Abueva shrugged off an accidental hit in Magnolia’s 94-80 win in the PBA Governors’ Cup semifinal series opener on Wednesday.
Calvin Abueva injury update
Newly recovered from a calf injury that forced him to miss a part of the eliminations, the Hotshots star forward took a hit to the midsection from Bolts import Tony Bishop late in the third quarter and was slow to get up as he had to be checked by medical staff.
But “The Beast” showed his toughness by returning to start the fourth quarter, where the Hotshots completed their turnaround from 17 points down.
“Nasiko yata siya sa abs kaya nawalan siya ng hangin, but nakabalik naman siya,” Hotshots coach Chito Victolero said.
“Siguro nakabuti pa kay Calvin,” he added. “Dahil pag balik niya, ang taas ng energy niya, ‘di ba? Especially in the fourth quarter, naka-contribute siya on both ends of the floor.”
Abueva finished with 12 points on 5-of-11 shooting, four boards, four assists, one steal, and one block in 32 minutes as the Hotshots gained the early lead in the best-of-five semifinals.
Expect Abueva and the Hotshots to go at it again for a commanding 2-0 lead in Game Two on Friday night.
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