THAT’S how champions are made of.
Jolted the last time out, Meralco subdued Utsunomiya Brex 97-86 last Sunday night to clinch a quarterfinals slot in Group B play of the Basketball Champions League Asia at Sheikh Saeed Bin Maktoum Sports Hall in Dubai.
An emotional Bolts active consultant Nenad Vucinic, listed as coach of the team in the meet, lauded his wards for rising over immense pressure to overcome the defending Japan B.League holder.
“I don’t want to take anything away from our team,” Vucinic said. “We were in a difficult situation and the boys really dug down and played really, really well, strong against a very good opposition.
“We wanted to make the quarterfinals. We were worried, honestly, to lose this game. There was a big chance that we wouldn’t make it. It was a very difficult game for us. It was a pressure game. But I think we showed that we can perform under pressure,” he added.
Chris Banchero and the import duo of Glynn Watson and Jordon Varnado all had 17 points for Meralco, which also drew a double-double from third reinforcement John Egbunu with 12 markers and 13 rebounds.
Cliff Hodge also ably stepped up for Chris Newsome’s paltry four-point outing with 16 points as the Bolts rebounded from an 87-101 loss to host Shabab Al Ahli on opening day last Saturday night.
Meralco, the reigning PBA Philippine Cup champion, tasted leads as much as 20 points on the way to the triumph that stoked the Bolts’ mark to 1-1—assured of a spot in the knockout phase of the joust formerly known as the FIBA Asia Champions Cup.
Utsunumiya, which drew a bye in Day 1, clashed with Shabab Al Ahli (1-0) at press time last night while the Bolts took a respite.
The eight best teams based on their standings after the group phase will make it to the quarterfinals.
Isaac Fotu, a former member of the New Zealand men’s national team, paced Utsunumiya with 20 points.
Finn Delany had 14 markers and six boards for Utsunumiya, with DJ Newbill and Makoto Hiejima producing 13 and 11 points, respectively.
After bagging a berth in the playoffs, it’s a different mission now—and a different but bigger accomplishment if and then Meralco can reach the semifinals in a one-goal-at-a-time mindset.
