THERE was no tinge of bitterness or regret in the faces of TNT gunners Calvin Oftana and RR Pogoy when they walked out of the Philsports Arena just minutes after the Tropang 5G’s grand slam ended with a 107-96 loss to San Miguel in Game 6.
Winning two of the three PBA titles this season ain't that bad, right?
READ: SMB reclaims PBA Philippine Cup title, denies TNT a grand slam
“Grateful parin kami. Kasi nga, this season, ayaw pa ba namin yun na nakadalawang champion kami?” Pogoy said, after finishing with 12 points and four assists on Friday in the Game 6 loss.
“Sayang talaga, grand slam e. Pero yung panahon e, injury, ang daming [nangyari], ganun talaga ang buhay eh, minsan sa 'yo, minsan hindi din.”
Oftana knows that opportunities like this one don't come often, so instead of crying over missing out, he’s filled with immense pride for getting the privilege to take a shot at PBA immortality by winning three consecutive titles.
The fact that they came two wins away from doing it amid all the struggles and the injuries that they faced this season – to him, and Pogoy included.
“Sa dami ng nangyari samin, 0-3 sa simula ng conference, tapos kinalaban pa namin twice-to-beat, on the run andaming injury pero it’s still a blessing for us.
“Two out of three this season. I’m proud of my teammates, my coaches. I’m proud of this guy [Pogoy] kahit may iniinda, kahit putol na 'yung hamstring niya, lumalaban parin.”
Oftana’s been dealing with ankle sprains on both feet, while sharing that he also strained his calf and groin in their march to the finals.
“Arcoxia at biogesic pinagsabay ko na para makapaglaro lang kahit maga,” Oftana said, referring to the pain reliever popular among athletes.
Pogoy’s injury is trickier to tackle.
While Oftana had the luxury of taking meds to manage the pain, the FEU standout can’t afford to do the same as there was a possibility of tearing more ligaments in his leg as he’s playing with a hamstring tear - even comparing it to Tyrese Haliburton's injury which started with a calf strain and ended with an Achilles tear.
The Cebuano guard said he was actually on a minutes restriction to start the series but started to add more load as the title playoff went on.
He played 35 minutes in this game – the most he’s played in six PBA Finals matches.
“Sa'kin kasi punit talaga yung hamstring ko, dapat four to six weeks yung pahinga pero two weeks lang nilaro ko na kaagad,” he said.
“Yung PT nga namin takot na takot e gusto ako palabasin, dapat two to three minutes lang e, gusto ako palabasin palagi kasi baka maputol [yung Achilles] delikado. Kasi yung kay [Tyrese] Haliburton nga e, strain lang nung una,” he added.
Still, if asked to do it again knowing that they’ll fall short in the end – the two wouldn’t have it any other way.
“Ano talaga, bahala na kasi finals, sayang e. Pero sa laro talaga, ika-ika e. Pag mag lay-up nga ako, kasi left hamstring ko pa, talagang walang lakas. Pinilit ko lang talaga,” Pogoy said. “Ganun talaga e. No regrets. At least naglaro ako kahit anong nangyari.”
“Yun nga e, finals to,” Oftana chimed in. “Once in a lifetime na nangyari na makapag-sunod sunod sa finals, pinilit namin maglaro, yun nga sabi ko sa inyo di ba, gamot na ang bahala e.”
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
