The Magnolia Hotshots are rolling—and no one’s complaining, according to Javi Gomez de Liaño.
Magnolia wrapped up the PBA Governors’ Cup elimination round with a sixth straight win on Wednesday, authoring a hard-fought 107-103 victory over the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters and, in the process, sealing the top seed in Group B.
Javi Gomez de Liaño Sparks Magnolia
Leading the way for the Hotshots was Javi Gomez de Liaño, who played a team-high 30 minutes—his most this conference—and responded with a Governors’ Cup-best 19 markers. In a slump since the Commissioner’s Cup, de Liaño was also finally on target, hitting six of his 10 triples as he found a groove with his extended minutes.
For the sweet-shooting forward, that floor burn was certainly a welcome development after multiple games of little to no minutes.
“I think on my end, being a professional, everything’s okay,” Gomez de Liaño stressed. “We’re number one in our bracket, and there’s nothing to complain about there. And Coach knows I’m just here anytime that he needs me. And today, Zav [Lucero] and Paul [Lee] weren’t active. Thankfully, Coach [LA Tenorio] gave everyone extended minutes. And this is a big morale booster for every one of us. Just giving that trust to every single player is a big factor for us heading to the quarterfinals.”
Lucero was in street clothes on Wednesday, sidelined by a sprained ankle that swelled immediately, according to Tenorio. Lee, meanwhile, will be out for the rest of the Governors’ Cup due to a calf injury. Down two key players, Tinyente turned to his bench, and it was Gomez de Liaño who shined the most, with Peter Alfaro (17 points, 2 assists) and Yukien Andrada (11 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists) also chipping in.
Can Hotshots Get Hotter?
With their sixth straight win, the Hotshots are now the hottest team heading into the playoffs alongside the Converge FiberXers, themselves winners of six straight. But, if JGDL is to be believed, Magnolia can and will still get better.
“We’re in high spirits, especially after this game. And I think we’re still about to reach our full potential as a team,” added Gomez de Liaño, who also had 5 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 block.
Magnolia will definitely need to reach its full potential sooner rather than later, as its reward for topping Group B is a quarterfinal clash with nemesis TNT Tropang 5G. To that end, getting Javi Gomez de Liaño untracked certainly helps.
