GEARING UP FOR THE PLAYOFF GRIND
Losing might not bode well on a team’s preparation for the playoffs, but coach Alex Compton can sleep knowing that the Alaska crew which finished the 117-104 overtime defeat to GlobalPort, majorly composed of third stringers, went all out and even stretched the Batang Pier to playing extra time.
“There are some things that we had to do but I was just really proud of the guys’ effort,” Compton said.
Already assured of the top seed, observers believe the Aces rested their core group in time for the playoffs on Friday.
“We really wanted to honor the game. I thought our guys played really hard, great until the end,” said Compton. “The players are aware if it’s a no-bearing game. But really, we wanted to emphasize playing as hard as we could. We pushed the team that is very talented.”
That move proved to be crucial as Compton definitely would like to have a squad in full health in hopes of winning the 2015 PBA Governors’ Cup.
“We played everybody in the first half like we always do, and then in the second half Romeo (Travis)’ knee was hurting. I mean, am I gonna run my import into injury in this game, or try to be smart? I don’t run any of our players into injuries during regular season even if the game matters. We just had to rest some guys, and Romeo is obviously the main guy. JVee (Casio), those guys. Calvin (Abueva) tweaked his ankle again,” said Compton.
Despite of the benching of his key cogs, the American coach was elated with what he saw.
“The biggest thing was all the guys from our team that came in, you saw how hard they played,” Compton said.
“It’s nice to see Eric (Menk) played well, Noy (Baclao) played well, Ping (Exciminiano) played well. It’s a big reason why I love our guys so much.”
Alaska opens its quarterfinals series on Friday owning a twice-to-beat advantage. (RL)
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