Don Trollano was the undisputed hero for the San Miguel Beermen in their Game 3 win over Barangay Ginebra San Miguel in their PBA Philippine Cup semifinals series. And it wasn’t just because he fired a game-high 33 points—it was also about the timing of his scoring.
Early in the third quarter, Ginebra seemed to be starting to seize control of Game 3, opening the period with a 9-2 run to take a 50-49 lead on a Jeremiah Gray triple in transition. Then, Trollano took over, hitting back-to-back triples and putting up 10 big points in a 16-0 blast that gave the Beermen a 65-50 lead. It was a lead San Miguel never relinquished, with Trollano himself dousing cold water on Ginebra’s repeated rallies in the fourth.
Trollano Bounces Back with Shoot-When-Open Mentality
Afterwards, Trollano attributed his fiery Game 3 performance to staying aggressive and taking advantage of open looks. He was particularly decisive when he took those two triples that stopped Ginebra’s momentum and put the Beermen ahead for good.
“Open kaya tinira ko,” the ex-Adamson Falcon said of his back-to-back, backbreaking treys. “Actually, bago ‘yun, nagdalawang-mintis na ‘ko, but my teammates and coaches trusted me, so tinira ko talaga kasi open. Good thing pumasok kasi magru-run ‘yung Ginebra.”
The veteran guard then reiterated that his mindset heading into Game 3 was simply to take those open looks, even after shooting just 5-for-20 combined in Games 1 and 2.
“Game 1 and Game 2 I wasn’t playing good,” Trollano admitted. “The mindset ngayong Game 3 is just play my game, just stay aggressive, and take a shot when I’m open.”
The Don took those shots—and it paid off. Now, San Miguel is up 2-1 in the series, with momentum firmly on its side. Best believe Trollano will continue staying aggressive in the upcoming games.
