THERE was no designated shooter, just a designated decision maker in Barangay Ginebra’s final play against Magnolia in their Manila Clasico Christmas Day showdown.
Coach Tim Cone disclosed letting rookie guard RJ Abarrientos call the final play in the Kings’ dramatic 95-92 win over the Hotshots in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Wednesday night before a crowd of 12,198 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
READ: Scottie three finishes epic Ginebra comeback in Christmas Clasico
“It was designated for RJ to make the decision. We wanted to get the ball into RJ’s hands and then put him in a pick and roll situation with Justin (Brownlee),” said Cone, recalling the last play of the team coming off a timeout in the final 11 seconds and the score tied at 92.
“So we wanted to flare Justin out and we were spreading everybody out and we were hoping that RJ would get some penetration into the paint either throw back to Justin or find somebody open.”
Abarrientos, who waxed hot in the second half by scoring 17 of his 20 points in that stretch, perfectly followed that instruction, running a pick and roll with Brownlee, who passed the ball back to the rookie playmaker.
He then drove to the basket before finding an open Scottie Thompson on the left corner.
The former MVP then buried the game winning three right at the buzzer, sending the pro-Ginebra crowd at the Big Dome in frenzy.
“So we put the game in RJ’s hands and he delivered with a great pass to Scottie,” said Cone.
Abarrientos was 6-of-11 from the floor, finished with five assists including the dish-off to Thompson, and three steals in guiding the Kings to a 4-2 record.
Justine Brownlee, who took over in the fourth quarter from where Abarrientos left off, had a game-high 28 points on 5-of-6 shooting from three-point distance, while Thompson had 14 points, five rebounds, and six assists.
“Everybody’s going to remember Scottie’s shot, but it was this guy (Abarrientos) who got the penetration and the kick and the pass to him,” said Cone.
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