CONVERGE coach Dennis ‘Delta’ Pineda admitted giving last-second instruction to Juan Gomez De Liano to go for a basket in the waning seconds of the team’s 106-96 win over Barangay Ginebra on Friday night in the PBA Philippine Cup.
Not to add insult to injury or for anything else.
It’s the quirk of the quotient at the end of the eliminations was what foremost in his mind that he ordered De Liano to drive to the basket with seven seconds remaining in a game played in a playoff atmosphere at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
READ Juan GdL's 32 piece highlights masterful Converge win over Ginebra
“Hindi ba quotient tayo? And baka may chance na mag-meet kami (Ginebra) sa huli. That’s why I gave a go-signal kay Juan to score,” said Delta afterwards.
“Hindi malayong mangyari, tama po di ba?”
During the customary team handshake at the end of the game, Ginebra coach Tim Cone was seen talking to Pineda at center court, the champion coach obviously not happy with the way the FiberXers tried to score at garbage time.
Nonetheless, Pineda, who is also vice-governor of Pampanga, apologized for his team’s action.
“Sorry kung nagbigay ako ng instruction, pero kailangan namin, e,” he added.
Asked about the incident with Cone, Pineda said he just shrugged his shoulders, although he hopes the Gilas Pilipinas coach would understand where Converge is coming from.
“Hindi ko na inintindi. Tumawa na lang ako,” he said. “Part po ng game yun and maiintinidhian din po niya at the end of the day.”
Delta Pineda says sorry
The Converge coach said he also approached San Miguel Corp. sports director and Barangay Ginebra governor Alfrancis Chua to apologize and explain his decision.
“Even kay Gov Al nag-sorry din ako, and I explained to Gov Al yung ruling natin ngayon,” said Pineda. “Quotient tayo, no knockout so important every point.”
The win by the way, was Pineda’s first against Cone and a Converge breakthrough against Ginebra in an all-Filipino conference after losing their four previous meetings, including last season’s quarterfinals, according to PBA chief statistician Fidel Mangonon III.
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