BUILDING THE BOOSTERS’ CHARACTER
Is Petronovela over?
If you would take into account the Boosters’ undefeated run after five games in the PLDT myDSL PBA Philippine Cup, one might say that it is.
Despite missing key players in their rotation, who would have thought that Petron Blaze will sit on top of the standings at this point?
With Junemar Fajardo, Arwind Santos, Marcio Lassiter, and Chris Lutz finding their groove, and Paolo Hubalde stepping up in the absence of Alex Cabagnot and Chris Ross, Petron’s 5-0 record speaks volumes of what it can do if the whole team will mesh with one another.
After their nail-biting 86-85 win over Alaska Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, coach Gee Abanilla said that the team is slowly carving an identity of their own as a squad.
“It’s a character win. The players refused to lose in the dying seconds,” he said. “We’re just lucky that we had this win.”
“We are trying to build an identity for ourselves that no matter what the situation is, we have to play hard and we have to play our best. And the players responded.”
He added, “They know that everytime that there is an opportunity for them to play, they have to give their all for their fans and the ones supporting them.”
When pressed if there is any goal the team wants to achieve, Abanilla said that their objective is very simple.
“From game one up to now, we have set our objectives. We want to do things right, be good at it, and continue to improve every game,” he said.
With Cabagnot and Ross set to return to the team, can Petron continue its winning ways and run through the competition for the rest of the tourney? (RLeongson)
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