SOMEONE THE BOLTS CAN ALWAYS COUNT ON
With the game on the line and 42.3 ticks remaining, Andre Emmett surveyed the floor.
He got the ball and drove to the hoop, a move he has done countless times before. Met by Japeth Aguilar on the break, the prolific reinforcement didn’t flinch, going to his left to easily drain the layup over the outstretched hands of the reed-thin Ginebra forward.
On the other end, he returned the favor, clamping down on Orlando Johnson, forcing the Ginebra import to lose his handle and turn the ball over.
Emmett finished with 34 points, 25 in the second half, alongside four rebounds, and four assists to give Meralco a glimmer of hope of making it to the quarterfinals.
But despite the team relying solely on him, he was gracious enough not to take all the credit.
“Our coaches did a great job. The team bought into the game plan and we fought for 48 minutes,” Emmett said.
As the Bolts practically played for dear life in that fateful game, Emmett said the team knew the implications if ever they lost the matchup.
“Coach emphasized how important this game was. Our guys stepped up. We had some moments where we fell off a little bit, but we kept on fighting until there was all zeroes in the clock and came out with the win,” he said.
Another win could send Meralco to the playoffs, and the team knows that for that to happen, they can and definitely will count on one Andre Emmett. (RL)
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