IT’S another bridesmaid finish for Magnolia in the PBA Philippine Cup.
Yet, coach Chito Victolero said he’s ready to go with this current crop of Hotshots if given another shot at playing in the finals of the all-Filipino conference.
“I would still want to go to any war with the same group of soldiers with great mentality and passion for the game, giving their best even if they miss their families and going thru different emotional stress,” said the Magnolia coach a day after finally leaving the Bacolor bubble in Pampanga following the Hotshots’ loss to the TnT Tropang Giga in their best-of-seven titles series, 4-1.
The finals loss in the Philippine Cup is the third time in the last four years for the Purefoods franchise, traditionally a team always considered as strong bets for the league’s crown jewel.
The Hotshots lost to the San Miguel Beermen in back-to-back fashion in 2018 and 2019, and were hoping third time's the charm when they made it back to the title series opposite top seed TnT.
Still, they fell short of regaining the highly coveted championship the team last won in 2014 especially with injuries hounding key players Paul Lee, Ian Sangalang, Mark Barroca, Rome dela Rosa, and Calvin Abueva.
But Victolero remains proud of what his team achieved given the Hotshots have seven new players in their fold and the uncertainty of time due to the pandemic.
“I still feel like a winner for having players who never give excuses on whatever physical pains they’re going through,” added the Magnolia coach.
“While in the process of building a strong team with the addition of seven new players in our family, we were able to get by working on different approach in preparing for the games and too much adjustments,” said Victolero. “But they all played like a true sportsman should be. We never put blame on anybody or whatever condition to our losses.”
Chito Victolero looks ahead
The Hotshots take a well-deserved rest after the campaign, but the grind follows immediately after as the team looks forward to completing its unfinished business.
“We may have been defeated, but we always think of doing better in the future,” said Victolero, who offered his congratulations to TnT counterpart Chot Reyes and the rest of the Tropang Giga.
“We will move forward together for a better future.”
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