SCORING ALL HIS LIFE
After Al Thornton scored a conference-high 50 points in NLEX’s 96-90 conquest of Barangay Ginebra, coach Boyet Fernandez just had to praise his import for a job well done.
“Al Thornton was really big,” he said. “His legs might not be as strong right now but his heart, sobrang laki. I credit this game to him and I do thank him for bringing this team to where we are right now. We cannot win against Ginebra without him.”
Dunks, drives, fade-away jumpers, and three-pointers, the NBA veteran did it all to give NLEX its first franchise three-game winning streak after his career game of 50 points and 18 rebounds on Wednesday.
But for Thornton, who literally took his time before emerging from the lockers almost an hour after the game, he feels that he should’ve scored more.
“I should’ve had sixty,” he said.
I missed way too many free throws,” as he went 11-of-18 from the charity stripe. “But all in all, I’m glad we got the win.”
After the long layoff courtesy of the All-Star Weekend, Thornton seemed like he was on his way to a miserable outing in Antipolo, missing his first four shots and finishing with only two points in the first quarter. But his game took a 180-degree turn in the next three quarters, even scoring 20 in the third.
“I was huffing and puffing in the first half, but we came out in the second half and executed and played NLEX basketball,” Thornton said.
His 50-point outing tops the 49-point explosion of Kia’s PJ Ramos in the Carnival’s defeat against Blackwater two weeks back. But for Thornton, he said that he is no stranger to these kinds of games.
“I’ve been scoring all my life,” he said, recounting his high school days when he last dropped 50 points. “My teammates did a great job in getting me the ball.” (RL)
Subscribe to INQUIRER PLUS to get access to The Philippine Daily Inquirer & other 70+ titles, share up to 5 gadgets, listen to the news, download as early as 4am & share articles on social media. Call 896 6000.
