CHANGE OF LOOK, CHANGE OF FORTUNES
After a three-game slide, Barangay Ginebra coach Jeffrey Cariaso was in desperate need of luck in time for the playoffs.
Tuesday evening, the Ginebra throng were welcomed by an obvious change on the sidelines.
The coaches left their long sleeved shirts and neckties at home and donned a commemorative red Ginebra shirt in their game against Alaska.
“It’s part of our promotional 180-year anniversary with Ginebra that we wanted to support. The players have been using this (shirt) as their warmup shirt. So we thought it would be nice to see the coaching staff wear it tonight,” Cariaso said.
If it’s a move to do away with their bad luck, consider it effective, as Ginebra finally ended its slide with a masterful 101-92 conquest of the Aces.
“I guess when you’re losing, you think of all kinds of things. Maybe it worked. Maybe it’s a lucky charm,” Cariaso said after the game.
But more than the attire, the Jet said that the team is just fed up from continuous defeats.
“Not to copy what Byron Scott said yesterday, but after a certain point, you just get tired of losing,” he said. “The guys were really determined tonight. I knew they would be ready facing a tough team. When a team is in the middle of the pack, that’s where we are in trouble. We have to bring our A-game when it comes to everybody.”
And Cariaso voiced his satisfaction on how the team responded.
“I’m happy for the guys for staying positive. We’re sort of desperate, our backs were against the wall. We wanted to make sure we secure, or have a good chance of securing the top four after the top two, so we’re just happy with the way the guys played tonight.” (RL)
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