NORBERT Torres had quite a night in Game One as he delivered on both ends of the floor against San Miguel.
Torres was one of the Barangay Ginebra players assigned the challenging task of trying to contain nine-time MVP June Mar Fajardo in the opener of their PBA Season 50 Philippine Cup semifinal series.
The Ginebra newcomer did more than that, finishing with eight points on 2-of-7 shooting from threes in the Gin Kings’ 99-90 win over the Beermen.
READ Cone, Ginebra feel fortunate to survive Fajardo's monster numbers
“Super sore talaga actually. Kasi kahit 20 minutes against June Mar, playing 20 minutes, it feels like 40 minutes. So very sore ‘yung katawan ko,” said Torres when asked about his role in defending Fajardo in Game One.
In a desperate bid to slow down Fajardo, Torres had to use five fouls just like Ginebra's starting center Japeth Aguilar.
“Just try to get less touches for June Mar as much as possible,” said Torres. “But that’s a hard task saying that. More of just early contact, laging contact sa kanya, and then trying as much as possible not to give him the offensive rebound.”
Fajardo still had monster numbers of 27 points and 23 points. The good thing, though, was that Ginebra was able to snag the victory against San Miguel and a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven semifinal series.
Torres also played a big role offensively in the win as his outside shooting clicked on Sunday. By making his threes, Torres was able to stretch the floor, force Fajardo to chase him in the perimeter and open up space inside the paint.
“That’s part of the game plan as well, just to stretch him out para he’s not always in the paint,” said Torres. “Good thing, it went in the fourth quarter.”
The free agent signee doesn’t expect the same thing to happen again in Game Two, where Ginebra expects major adjustments from the San Miguel side.
“For sure, it’s just going to get harder,” said the La Salle product. “June Mar’s going to come out stronger, they’re going to look for him more. The other guys are also going to step up as well. They’re probably going to make their shots.
"So we have to adjust to that.”
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