ANTIPOLO City - Calvin Abueva kept mum following the latest controversy he found himself in following Phoenix's 114-88 loss to TnT Katropa in the PBA Commissioner's Cup Sunday night.
"Pahinga muna," he said as he passed by a throng of reporters on his way out at the Ynares Sports Center.
But team governor Atty. Raymond Zorrilla said that has been 'The Beast' ever since.
"That's him. He's emotional," said the Phoenix official of the enigmatic forward, who was thrown out of the game midway in the fourth period after he clotheslined TnT import Terrence Jones that merited an automatic flagrant foul penalty 2 infraction.
"Ever since we got him I always said high risk, high stakes. But that's who he is."
Zorilla also pointed out Abueva wouldn't have done it against Jones had the referees called an earlier incident in which the import appeared to have hit the former NCAA MVP on the groin.
Jones later denied hurting Abueva on his private, but Zorilla pointed out the obvious.
"It was clear. It was a punch, pero nothing happened with the referees," said the Phoenix official.
Zorrilla said he's not tolerating what Abueva did, but stressed things wouldn't have come that had the referees established control from the very start.
"Siyempre mali pa rin yung ginawa ni Calvin. But it would have not come to that had it been called," he said.
Zorrilla however, called the game as an exception.
"Right from the very start, emotions were high. But I think both teams will move on from this," he said.
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