THE SPARK ONE-UPS ROMEO: ‘LET’S DO THIS AGAIN!

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At the age of 34, Mark Caguioa definitely still has a lot left in the tank.

And he showed just that when Barangay Ginebra San Miguel faced the GlobalPort Batang Pier Thursday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Face-to-face with Terrence Romeo, a player who has been compared to him by ex-teammate Eric Menk, Caguioa showed the crowd once again that in the PBA, he still is the king.

Romeo led the Batang Pier comeback after trailing by as much as 19, and capped it off with a basket over Caguioa which gave GlobalPort a 93-91 lead with four minutes to play.

That was when “The Spark” had enough.

He launched a trey from the wing to regain the lead, then followed it up with two freebies from the stripe and then fed Greg Slaughter for a dunk. Another jumper and a three-point play after, and Ginebra regained control, 103-95.

But Romeo refused to just sink, as he cut the lead to six on a three-point play.

That was when Caguioa dealt the final blow, a three-pointer from the wing to put the end to their duel.

“I had to do something and I’m glad I made those shots,” he said.

As the dust settled, the score read Ginebra 109 – GlobalPort 104, with Caguioa topping Romeo, 29-27.

After the game, Caguioa approached Romeo and gave the rookie some words before they left the court.

But for the 2012 PBA Most Valuable Player, the shootout with Romeo just shows what he can still do despite the influx of good players in the league.

“I’m way older than him and sometimes, pag-akyat ng mga rookies sa PBA, kaming mga veterans, especially those at age 30, dapat i-challenge mo rin yung sarili mo. You have to challenge yourself,” said Caguioa. “Coach Al (Chua) reminded us, ‘You guys, you need to take over. Kailangan nyong alagaan tong lead na to.’ Nung nag-tie at lumamang pa sila ng two points, that was when we made a run and started to take over the game.”

He also has only praises for Romeo, saying, “He’s a good kid, and at the same time, he’s ready for the challenge. He has a bright future ahead of him. I told Terrence to keep it up.”

He added, “Once a player is very aggressive, he’ll shoot the ball. May isang quarter nga na parang di sya medyo tumitira but he found a way to get that ball and kept isolating and kept scoring. A kid would have an off-night, but he’ll find a way to score. As long as he keeps on shooting, may papasok din dyan.”

“You really need to pressure him. Talagang magaling sya at nakakalampas pa rin sya sa defenders nya eh. Once a scorer will always be a scorer. Kailangan mo lang gawin is kung pano mo sya pahihirapan.”

When pressed for comments of his former teammate Eric Menk comparing Romeo to a young Mark Caguioa, he said that he thinks that the comparison is valid.

“From the way it looks right now, he’s a great scorer,” Caguioa said.

On the encounter after the game, Caguioa just left a few messages to the young guard, saying, “Next game, I’m gonna see you again. Lets do this again.” (RLeongson)

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