THE DAREDEVIL WON’T BACK DOWN FROM ANY CHALLENGE
Smaller but quicker. Undermanned but not outhustled.
That was the battle cry the Meralco Bolts used to topple the mighty Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings Tuesday at the Mall of Asia Arena, as they scored a 100-87 rout to give the crowd-favorites their first blemish of the season.
And who led the team in the win? It was no less than their team captain Jared Dillinger.
The five-year veteran from Littleton, Colorado was instrumental in the victory, as he shot 10-of-21 from the field for his game-high 25 points, along with 10 boards, and two steals.
Dillinger’s energy rubbed off on his teammates, as Mike Cortez (21 points and 11 assists), and Rabeh Al-Hussaini (14 points and 16 rebounds) posted double-doubles of their own, while Gary David and John Wilson both had 14 markers in a combined 6-of-10 shooting from beyond the arc.
Despite his inspired play in the game, “The Daredevil” shrugged off the compliments and commended the whole team for stepping up despite missing the services of big men Kerby Raymundo and Don Allado, as well as forwards Cliff Hodge and Rey Guevarra.
“It’s a good team win tonight,” he said. “I’m really proud of the guys tonight. Coach Jong (Uichico) had a good defensive game plan and we just followed and implemented his and coach Ryan’s (Gregorio) plan. We just played good team basketball.”
Gregorio’s gamble to put Dillinger against the much taller Japeth Aguilar played dividends for Meralco, frustrating the lanky forward which clearly had an effect in the defensive mindset of the whole Ginebra team.
“Jared is a warrior. Nobody can just back him down,” Gregorio said. “With a lot of players down, as long as the game is played five-on-five, they don’t have an edge. We’re just a quicker team against them.”
This claim was further supported by Dillinger, saying, “We wanted to play a little bit smaller and tonight it worked out for us. We had a hard time guarding their fours and I’m just glad that they weren’t able to get any runs or the Ginebra chants from the crowd.”
Both coach Ryan and Jared knows the importance of the win against Ginebra, and despite this confidence booster of a win, both still kept their eye on the challenge ahead and how the team meshes with each their through the process.
“It was a huge game for us, not just standings-wise,” Dillinger said. “We really needed to get back to .500. But as much as we want to celebrate, we have to prepare against GlobalPort.”
Gregorio added, “At this point, we’re still finding our character and it’s still manifesting.” (RLeongson)
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