ANTIPOLO – Phoenix Super LPG suffered its second straight defeat on Friday, and the next games won’t be any easier.
The Fuel Masters are slated to play San Miguel on Sunday to cap off a stretch of three PBA Governors Cup games in five days. They will enter that match-up, however, with a 0-2 record after their 108-105 defeat to Blackwater.
READ: Glover, Casio clutch as Blackwater averts collapse vs Phoenix
Phoenix interim coach Jamike Jarin accepted the blame as the Fuel Masters started the conference on the wrong foot.
“I blame myself for this,” said Jarin. “You can’t put that loss to players. I should have prepared them better. We started a little flat so that’s me on my part.”
Jarin though is sticking to the positives with the two losses coming in winnable games, including a four-point defeat to traditional contender TNT last Wednesday.
“But the good thing is we didn’t stop playing. We played better in the fourth quarter. In fact, even in the third quarter, we played better. Everybody was into the game. Lesson learned, we just need to keep working on the mistakes that we made and get a win,” said Jarin.
“I’m a positive guy. I like to look at the positives rather than the negative. There are of course a lot of adjustments to be made. Hopefully, we can fast track that. That’s my job and the coaching staff’s job to put it together,” said Jarin.
“We’ve got a lot of great players that really helps us a lot. It makes it easier for you when you have all these types of coaches behind you and these types of players playing for the franchise,” said Jarin.
Du’Vaughn Maxwell carried Phoenix with 37 points on Friday, but Jarin said he wants to find a way for the locals to get more involved.
“We thank Max for doing everything, rebounding, defending, bringing the ball, passing. He is an all-around player. We are fortunate to have him. But we need to support him as well. We are a team that is very young. Compared to the other teams, we are not that talented. We have to give contributions from the bench, from the people in the bench. They should make contributions in any little way,” said Jarin.
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