RICCI Rivero had a very physical night on Sunday when Phoenix went up against San Miguel in the PBA Philippine Cup.
Rivero drew four fouls from the Beermen, some of them ‘duty fouls’ committed by SMB veterans Jericho Cruz and Chris Ross. Phoenix’s second-round pick even had a brief staredown with Cruz before the two were separated.The fouls led to eight free throw attempts with Rivero making only three.
Jarin on hard fouls: 'Talagang ganun'
Still, Phoenix coach Jamike Jarin saw nothing wrong with some of the hard fouls on Rivero.
“Talagang ganun. The PBA is known for its physicality,” said Jarin on the fouls against Rivero after the game against San Miguel. “Nothing dirty. Just physical.”
Rivero finished with 10 points and four rebounds in the Fuel Masters’ 116-102 loss to San Miguel. The rookie out of UP is now averaging 9.8 points in the Philippine Cup, three points higher than his production in the Commissioner’s Cup.
Rivero defends against Romeo
Aside from dealing with the physicality, the Phoenix rookie was also busy on defense as he also got the responsibility of guarding San Miguel star guard Terrence Romeo.
The role isn’t actually new as just last week, Rivero also got the role of defending Romeo during the PBA All-Star Game in Bacolod City.
Jarin believes Rivero can match up with the best in the league, and Sunday’s experience will eventually help his career moving forward.
“He is long and he has the length and athleticism to stay in front of (players) same as him. We are trying to give him some more responsibility which I think, he will benefit from of course in the future,” said Jarin.
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