Rookie big man Geo Chiu is starting to get his feet under him.
The first overall pick of the 2025 PBA Draft played the best game of his young career on Friday, putting up a monster 19-point, 23-rebound double-double to help the Terrafirma Dyip open the PBA Governors’ Cup with a win over the Titan Ultra Giant Risers.
Geo Chiu’s Historic Night
Chiu’s 23 rebounds are a franchise best and part of Terrafirma’s all-time record-setting 94-rebound effort. Paired with his career-high 19 points, the center from Ateneo nearly registered the first-ever 20-20 game by a local in franchise history. Needless to say, the big man had a big night. Yet he downplayed it afterward, noting that it was merely his time to shine in Terrafirma’s next-man-up ecosystem.
“’Yung team namin nawalan ng players, so [ang] mentality namin ngayon is to step up,” Chiu said after the Dyip’s win at Ynares Center in Antipolo. “Any given day naman, ‘yong teammates ko, kaya mag-step up. Araw ko lang po siguro. Sa susunod na mga araw, ‘yong teammates ko naman.”
The one-time MPBL slotman may be right, especially when it comes to scoring. But he might be underselling himself a little too much. The 23 rebounds aren’t exactly an anomaly, as he proved in the Commissioner’s Cup that he’s a prolific rebounder—ending up as the only local other than June Mar Fajardo to average at least 10 rebounds a game.
Self-Belief Is Growing for Geo Chiu
To be clear, Chiu is still very much a work in progress, but his opening-day showcase was all sorts of encouraging as he looked more confident, more aggressive, and more comfortable on the court. And all that is a byproduct of a growing self-belief molded in part by a supportive coaching staff led by Ronald Tubid.
“Kailangan ko lang maging patient at magtiwala sa sarili,” Chiu pointed out. “Si Coach Ronald, sinasabihan ako araw-araw na magtiwala lang ako sa sarili ko.”
The Geo Chiu who dominated Titan Ultra on Friday looked like a man with self-belief. That trust is growing—and it only bodes well for Terrafirma.
