Barangay Ginebra San Miguel won Game 2 of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals against the TNT Tropang Giga—barely.
And part of the reason the crowd darlings needed two crucial defensive stops in the end is the lack of offense, particularly from the players not named Justin Brownlee and Scottie Thompson. The three-time Best Import and former MVP scored 52 of Ginebra’s 71 points, and that proved enough at least in Game 2.
But it might not work moving forward, especially if the rest of Tim Cone’s wards shoot a ghastly 15.6% from the field (5-for-32).
A big contributor to that brick fest is the usually prolific RJ Abarrientos, who clanked all seven of his attempts, including a head-scratching four-point attempt at the 1:20 mark of the fourth with Ginebra trailing, 70-69.
Ginebra Needs More from RJ Abarrientos
Moving forward, Cone knows Ginebra needs more from the no. 3 overall pick in the 2024 PBA Draft, who also struggled in Game 1. In that Ginebra loss, Abarrientos went just 3-for-10 from the field to finish with plus/minus of –5 despite scoring 13 points. He was also targeted heavily by the Tropa on defense.
“We need to get RJ untracked. I think that’s going to be important for us to get RJ untracked offensively,” said Cone after Game 2. “If we can do that, we could maybe squeak out another game in Game 3.”
Aside from shooting better, Cone is also hoping his prized rookie will improve his decision-making in the wake of the ill-advised four-point attempt.
“I thought he took a bad shot at that time. He could have gotten to the basket a little better. He’ll learn from that, he’ll get better from it,” said Cone. “I had a lot of trust in him that I put him down there in the stretch, and I expect him to make decisions. He failed from that one and he’ll learn from it.”
Indeed, Cone showed faith in RJ Abarrientos in a close endgame. The young guard, though, was unable to repay that trust.
Cone and Ginebra fans are hoping he can do so in Game 3—and beyond.
