Barangay Ginebra San Miguel came away the victors on Sunday in their crucial tiff against the Phoenix Fuel Masters, but for a while, they looked headed for another heartbreaking loss as Ricci Rivero put on an absolute show in the third quarter and the early part of the fourth quarter.
In all, Rivero put up a career-high 28 points, including a pair of highlight dunks as he repeatedly got into the heart of Ginebra’s defense. The high-flyer’s career-best effort came on the heels of Juan Gomez de Liaño torching the crowd darlings for his own personal high of 32 markers in a Converge FiberXers victory. Earlier this PBA Season 50 Philippine Cup, Tim Cone’s squad got lit up as well by another former UP Fighting Maroon in CJ Cansino, who dropped what was then a career-high 18 points to lead the Meralco Bolts to an electrifying comeback win.
The Curse of Playing for Ginebra
Cone is hardly surprised by players showing out against the PBA’s most popular team. In fact, he expects it because Ginebra games hit just a bit different for most players on opposing squads.
“Guys are gonna be ready to play us. This is their showcase game, and we realize that,” Cone admitted to reporters after Ginebra’s win on Sunday. “In the seven, eight years I’ve been on the team, it’s something we talk about a lot. We know that we’ll see everybody’s best game, and that’s just the challenge Ginebra has, it’s the challenge we have playing with Ginebra.”
Gomez de Liaño himself acknowledged previously the “different atmosphere” when playing Ginebra that makes “the game a lot more intense.” From the looks of it Rivero felt it, too, and was ready for his moment—until the crowd darlings finally put the clamps on him down the stretch.
“Again, it’s something we expect, it’s something that we talk about, and we plan. That’s the challenge we have that not all of the other teams necessarily have,” Cone continued.
So far, three of the league’s brightest young stars—Cansino, Gomez de Liaño, and Rivero—have challenged Ginebra to the hilt. Now, it’s up to Cone and his wards to prevent others from doing the same.
