OUT with the usual suspects, in with the new ones.
That’s what coach Chot Reyes of defending champion TNT saw in the Tropang Giga’s defeat in the fourth game of the Big Dance against Ginebra last Sunday night.
“(Stephen) Holt is defending Rondae (Hollis-Jefferson) the whole game and he’s still scoring,” Reyes said of the pro league’s reigning Rookie of the Year, who unleashed 18 points for the Kings on top of three rebounds, two assists, and five steals while harassing Hollis-Jefferson, the newly minted two-time best import, like a shadow.
“We know (Justin) Brownlee, Scottie (Thompson), and Japeth (Aguilar)—those are given. But the game of the two guys was causing us a lot of problems. So, we have to find a solution for that,” he added.
Reyes’ sentiments came on the heels of TNT’s 92-106 loss to Ginebra in Game 4 of their best-of-7 finals clash for the PBA Governors’ Cup title.
Ahanmisi also fired 18 markers, grabbed eight boards, dished off three dimes and had two steals as the Kings evened the series at 2-2 heading into the crucial fifth tiff tomorrow at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Reyes gave Holt and Ahanmisi plaudits.
“Unbelievable. My hat’s off to Mav and Stephen,” he said. “They’re really making it very difficult for us.”
Holt said: “I know I’m called an import stopper, but we’re not really stopping Rondae, we’re just trying to make it difficult, and we’ve done a great job these last two games, and we just got to do it for two more.”
The season-ending finals showdown is fast selling like hot pancakes.
The Tim Cone-mentored Ginebra crew’s second straight victory in the title round drew a rating of 4.7 percent on NUTAM (National Urban Television Audience Measurement) and 4.1 percent on PHINTAM (Philippine National Television Audience Measurement), respectively.
The massive audience share paved the way for RPTV to climb to No. 3 in the ratings.
Game 4 also peaked at 5.34 percent or viewers of 3.89 million.
The game not only proved to be a huge hit on television but also at the venue.
A total of 16,783 wild and roaring fans showed up in Game 4, the largest live audience for a PBA game since Game 7 of the Commissioner’s Cup title series between Ginebra and guest team Bay Area Dragons last year.
The game held at the Philippine Arena drew a record crowd of 54,589.
Now reduced to a best-of-3, expect more fierce battles and jampacked arenas as the race to the Promised Land hits a crescendo.
