KEEPING THE FAITH
With Rain or Shine’s back against the wall, Jeff Chan went bonkers in the second half, scoring 23 of his game-high 24 points in the second half, and most importantly, drained 14 markers in the fourth, which gave the E-Painters a new lease on life Sunday.
“Attack mode lang ako kasi ayokong i-give up yung game eh. Gusto ko pang maglaro,” said the former FEU stalwart.
Chan said the lingering thoughts of their campaign coming to an end triggered him to be more aggressive, as they would have gotten the axe had the Mixers escaped with the win.
“Medyo kinakabahan pa rin ako,” he said. “Nire-remind ko lang yung mga teammates ko na wag kami bumitaw. Kasi sa last games, lamang kami sa fourth quarter tapos biglang bibitaw. Kaya kanina, talagang nire-remind ko sila na importante yung game na to.”
Acknowledging that his numbers have taken a dip the past few games, the Gilas gunner said that he knew he had to get into the groove for them to further extend the series.
“Last two games, mababa yung scoring ko kaya kailangan talagang mag-contribute para sa team. Si Paul (Lee), medyo nabantayan sya kaya kailangan ko talagang gumawa,” Chan said. “Hopefully next game, sabay na kaming pumutok para di ganong kahirap yung laro para sa amin at para mas maganda yung kalabasan ng game.”
The Game 5 win re-energized the E-Painters, prompting Chan to get his confidence back for the impending task at hand.
“Na-break namin tonight yung three-game winning streak nila,” he said. “Tingin ko kaya din naman naming manalo ng tatlo kaya positive lang kami. Wag kami bibitaw at dumikit lang kami sa laban, we’re good.”
“Ang goal namin is umabot pa ng Game 7. Kaya naming ipanalo yun.” (RL)
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