A BIG victory over a red-hot Barangay Ginebra team before a partisan crowd at the Smart Araneta Coliseum surely deserves a celebration, right?
But that apparently isn't enough to get the Alaska Aces too excited inside the dugout on Wednesday night. Nor the fact that the Uytengsu franchise had just locked up the top spot in the PBA Commissioner's Cup playoffs and the twice-to-beat edge that goes with it.
A peek inside the dugout by Spin.ph after the 102-93 victory over Ginebra - the Aces' 10th in 13 starts in the eliminations - showed the mood was a lot more sedate than expected.
"The guys are happy," said veteran forward Tony dela Cruz, "but they aren't satisfied."
Asked to elaborate, dela Cruz, one of the few holdovers from the Alaska team that last won a championship under Tim Cone in the 2009-10 Fiesta Conference, said the ballclub won't be satisfied until it goes all the way.
“We have to win a championship to be the Alaska of old, so no one is satisfied (until we hit that aim),” said the Aces' captain. “We’re not satisfied until we get a championship, so we really haven't done anything yet."
Alaska coach Luigi Trillo was apparently happy with what he had seen. Seeing his team not getting all pumped up after an elimination-round win can only mean the team is hungry for more.
“It’s surprising, it’s like they weren’t really in celebration," he said of the serious mood inside the dugout. "It’s like they had a serious look. They know we haven’t accomplished anything yet.
"The guys know there's more (for them) out there."
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