IT was the closest replication that this modern-day Barangay Ginebra could do to honor the oh-so-familiar "Never-Say-Die" tradition of its predecessors.
And coach Tim Cone hoped his team did justice to the role.
“Just the aura of Ginebra, of never-say-die,” said the 67-year-old Cone as he tried to reflect on the Christmas Day comeback his Kings authored against the Magnolia Hotshots in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup.
READ: Scottie three finishes epic Ginebra comeback in Christmas Clasico
Behind the guns of rookie RJ Abarrientos and Justin Brownlee, the Kings authored another one of their epic comebacks reminiscent of the Ginebra teams of old under legendary coach Sonny Jaworski to stun the Hotshots, 95-92.
As Abarrientos and Brownlee rallied the team from the depth of a 22-point deficit, Scottie Thompson put the icing on the cake by draining the game-winning three pointer from the right corner at the buzzer to give the hordes of Ginebra fans a perfect gift on Christmas Day at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Cone knows his team is a lot different from that gung ho, ragtag unit Jaworski had in his disposal in the mid-80s to the late 90s.
“You know, we don’t represent it as much as the old Jaworski days, but we still feel it,” said the two-time Grand Slam champion coach, who was a big Jaworski fan during his younger years.
“We still talk about it and its still part of our culture. So (on Christmas night) we lived up to Sonny Jaworski and his crew. And I’m really proud about that.”
Ginebra avoided losing back-to-back games for the first time this conference and improved to a 4-2 record heading to the holiday break.
The Kings resume their campaign on Jan. 5 by taking on defending champion San Miguel in the two teams’ first meeting since Ginebra booted out the Beermen in the semifinals of the Governors’ Cup.
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