ALLEN Durham was not happy with his game and admitted he was rusty. He did not have his usual power and stamina but it was not exactly a dissapointing outing as the import scored 20 points and grabbed 16 rebounds in his initial outing with Meralco on Sunday in the Season 49 Governors’ Cup opener.
Despite Durham's ordinary day, the Bolts beat the Magnolia Chicken Timplados, 99-94, to open the season.
“I’m not as young as I used to be," he admitted. "I can’t just power in there so I have to figure out a way to maneuver and stuff like that. The outside shots started to fall a little bit. I think it opened up a lot.”
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Durham hit 3-of-5 threes but made just four of 13 shots from two-point territory and said he was out of rythm but believed he will return to form as the season progresses. It was, after all, just his first game in the PBA since Game Six of the 2019 Governors' Cup Finals last January 17, 2020 where they lost to Barangay Ginebra.
“But I’ll get back to my form and we will get better and better as the conference goes on,” said Durham.
“Tonight, with all the festivities, it kinda threw off the normal game rhythm with the show and everything. But like coach said, we just kept reaching. Find a way, find a way, get through this first couple of games because we’ve been practicing not that long.
“So proud of the coaches and the guys for staying together through this tough first game,” said Durham.
Meralco coach Luigi Trillo said the team only had six practices prior to the opening game. But it helped that Durham was already familiar with the team's playbook and was able to adjust as the game wore on.
Helping Durham get adjusted were the team's other bigs who alternated at the post as the import took breaks to catch his breath. Trillo credited Cliff Hodge, Brandon Bates, Kyle Pascual, and Norbert Torres for doing their bit.
“We know we are a little bit rusty but this team is also a veteran team. AD has been with us for a long time. We know he is not yet in peak form but he was up to the task of finding ways,” he added.
“Just to credit AD, our team, the guys in the first half, the bigs kept him fresh. They stood their ground, played their roles. By the time the second half came, AD was fresher,” Trillo said.
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