THE sight of confetti raining on the hard court and Ginebra hoisting the PBA Commissioner’s Cup championship tonight should be a heartbreaker for TNT import Rondae Hollis-Jefferson.
After a numbing 66-73 loss to the Kings in Game 5 last Sunday night, Hollis-Jefferson is convinced the Tropang Giga can still recover—they only need to be locked in.
“We just need to lock in and understand how important it is,” Hollis-Jefferson said. “We lose, it’s over. Me gambling on something I shouldn’t gamble on.
“Turning the ball over. Me missing those easy shots in the paint,” he added.
The sixth tiff of the race-to-4 series is set tonight at 7:30 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Game 7, if needed, is scheduled for Friday, March 28, at the same venue.
Hollis-Jefferson, the newly minted best import of the conference, totaled 19 points and 12 rebounds, but went 0-4 in crunch time when the Chot Reyes-mentored TNT five went scoreless in the final four minutes.
He admitted his endgame woes factored in his team’s setback despite the Tropang Giga leading by as many as 10 points at the half.
“That’s focused. That’s 100 percent on us, us players,” Hollis-Jefferson said. “It’s about being locked in.”
Ginebra wingman Stephen Holt’s defense on Hollis-Jefferson is also fast turning out to be one of the keys in the finals, according to Hollis-Jefferson.
“(Stephen) Holt has been doing a really good job defending me, so I have to watch some films and see how I can win that matchup,” the now three-time best reinforcement said. “I’d say he made it tough for me for the whole series, but I also made it tough for myself.
“I’m thinking about it too much, so I’ll go back to the drawing board and see them in Game 6.”
With their backs against the wall, Hollis-Jefferson maintained their fortitude will be tested in tonight’s no-tomorrow match.
“(Coach) Chot (Reyes) said it to us, it’s about our mentality going into those crucial moments. Turnover. Wrong read on a defensive play,” he said. “Allowing someone to reject the screen. All 48 minutes, whether we go up or not. Just staying locked in.”
