RAYMOND Aguilar made the most out of his extended playing time in Barangay Ginebra's Game 1 win over top-seed San Miguel on Wednesday night.
The back up big man not only suited up, but turned out to be Tim Cone's energizer off the bench, contributing six points, a block and a rebound, in the Kings’ 73-71 comeback win at the Mall of Asia Arena.
READ: Holt, Troy, Japeth help Ginebra steal Game One from San Miguel
The early foul trouble to veteran center Japeth Aguilar prompted coach Tim Cone to send one of his shock troopers and try to defend the Ginebra frontcourt against eight-time MVP June Mar Fajardo.
And he certainly did a good job in sacrificing his body against the banged-up Fajardo, ending the night with a +13 on his metrics -- showing that Ginebra was playing a whole lot better with him on the floor.
“This is our job naman talaga na pagpasok namin magbigay ng energy sa team. Medyo maagang na foul trouble si Japeth. Buti na lang nakapag step up tayo,” said the 38-year-old Aguilar, who usually comes off the bench during 'garbage time.'
“Ini-embrace ko naman yung role ko. And alam ko naman ang role ko, magamit or hindi, just keep ready lang especially playoffs na tayo.”
As one of the players being cheered on by fans over at the Ginebra bench, Aguilar admitted being humbled by the experience.
But he stressed it’s not only him but the entire Ginebra team who stormed back from an 18-point deficit on Wednesday that truly deserves the adulation of their loyal supporters.
“Alam mo naman ang mga fans natin, kapag Ginebra lahat yan love nila. Nakakataba ng puso talaga,” he said. “May kilig siyempre.”
He admitted that taking the challenge of defending the 6-foot-10 Fajardo in the middle was far from easy, but he made sure to do everything he can to slow down the eight-time MVP.
“Siyempre naman, June Mar Fajardo eight-time MVP yun,” Aguilar said. “Buti nga medyo ano siya sa akin, hindi niya ako gaano binabakbak.”
It might only be the first game of the best-of-seven series, but Aguilar knows that they couldn't have started any better as they rallied back from as many as 18 points down , 43-25, behind the strong play of Ginebra's bench as they also got solid minutes from Nards Pinto, Ben Adamos, Jeremiah Gray, and Jayson David.
“Sana makuha natin. 1-0 pa lang naman, mahaba-haba pa tayo. Sana makaulit ng dalawa para medyo maganda-ganda ang lagay,” he said.
Game 2 is set Friday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
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