IT’S back to the drawing board for Scottie Thompson and Barangay Ginebra after being walloped by TNT in an all-important Game 5 of the PBA Governors’ Cup finals, 99-72, in front of another packed crowd at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Wednesday.
All’s not lost for the Gin Kings, however, as it’s their turn now to make the necessary adjustments after the Tropang Giga finally responded with answers of their own on the heels of back-to-back losses over the weekend.
“Na-outplay nila kami. They came out really aggressive this game. That’s it,” Thompson said.
“Yung adjustment nila really worked for us, so it’s time for us na kami naman ang mag-adjust sa next game.”
READ: Cone not putting too much into Ginebra's worst PBA Finals loss in 6 years
The former PBA MVP was actually the only player who had a decent shooting night for Ginebra, as he kept his team afloat by scoring 13 of his team's 20 first quarter points –making sure the Gin Kings stayed within striking distance early on.
But once Thompson got checked, no other player stepped up to the plate for Ginebra, allowing TNT to take a 23-point lead at the half and ultimately cruise to a 3-2 series edge.
Not even the brilliant Justin Brownlee could spare the Gin Kings from the blowout, as he played the worst game of his PBA career, finishing with just eight points on 3-13 shooting from the field.
Thompson, though, isn’t putting the blowout on their import. Rather, it’s on them as a team.
“I think it's on us. We lose as a team, we win as a team. We played bad, lahat kami. Not just JB, I think all of us,” he said.
“Lahat din sila sa TNT, maganda yung ginawa nila. We just have to stay positive for the next game.”
Game Six, will fix
When Thompson and Ginebra enter the court this Friday for Game 6, there’s going to be a sense of a deja vu that they’d hope to avoid completely.
In the same conference last year, they were in a similar position, with the Tropang Giga taking a critical 3-2 lead and eventually finishing them off come Game 6.
Thompson, however, isn’t even thinking about that anymore.
“Let’s put away everything. We just have to focus on that game,” he said.
“Whatever the past is, especially this game tonight, we have to keep moving forward come the next game and stay positive. Yun lang.”
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