GREG Slaughter wanted the win first and foremost. But the last thing he wanted to happen was to be "killed" by June Mar Fajardo in their first face-off in a PBA game.
“I just have to give 100 percent (against Fajardo) because if I don’t, he’s gonna kill me," said the 6-11 rookie after Ginebra came away in a 105-98 victory over San Miguel Beer in the two giants' in a PBA showdown that was twice aborted because of injuries to Fajardo.
"But just thankfully, we came out with a win today,” added Slaughter.
The two giants, longtime rivals in Cebu's college basketball circuit, more or less cancelled each other out. Slaughter had 19 points and 11 rebounds for Ginebra while the 6-10 Fajardo scored 23 points and grabbed 14 rebounds before fouling out in the endgame.
But more than the comparisons with Fajardo, Slaughter was more focused on Ginebra's drive in a backbreaking stretch that, after the San Miguel game, would see them play two more games (against Alaska and Talk 'N Text) in a span of four days.
“Hopefully, we get one more (win) and we’ll be in the Top Four, that’s our goal. But it would be nice if we finish with two more wins,” added the former Ateneo big man.
For his part, Fajardo tried to deflect the attention from his rivalry with Slaughter.
“Hindi naman about sa amin ni Greg 'yun (game) eh kundi para sa team namin ni Greg yun eh,” said the San Miguel sophomore, currently the statistical leader in the race for this season’s MVP award.
“Okay naman ang match-up, pero wala, talo kami. Saka ayoko kasi maging individual player, gusto ko maging team player,” added the 24-year-old slotman out of the University of Cebu.
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