Two games into the PBA Governors’ Cup Finals, it seemed as if Barangay Ginebra San Miguel had no answer to the TNT Tropang Giga.
So, Ginebra coach Tim Cone turned to an old reliable—veteran point guard LA Tenorio—to steady the ship. The 40-year-old former Gilas Pilipinas mainstay responded.
Tenorio sparked a solid start for Ginebra in the first quarter, breaking loose for six points and getting a couple of steals as the crowd favorites played their own brand of tight defense—a TNT special this conference that was once the MO of Ginebra.
And it was exactly the tonic the Barangay needed to win Game 3 and finally get on the board in these PBA Governors’ Cup Finals.
Tinyente Sets the Tone as Ginebra Relies on Defense
With Ginebra’s offense yet to get untracked in these Finals, Cone looked to tighten the screws on TNT—and it appears he called on Tenorio to help establish that defensive mentality from the get-go.
“We had a style of play that we wanted to come out with that he was very comfortable with and we’ve done in the past and played like that. We tried to go back a little bit to our old identity of being a defensive team first,” Cone told reporters after Game 3. “He understood that, and we wanted to set that tempo at the beginning of the game.”
While not known as a stopper, The Gineral did set the tone for Ginebra, both on offense and defense, finishing with 9 points and 4 steals in 16 minutes of game time.
Scottie Thompson, who chipped in 15 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists, was not the least bit surprised that Tenorio answered the call, noting that his Kuya LA is “a winner.” It was also just like old times for the former MVP, who for the longest time started that Ginebra backcourt with Tenorio.
“I’m confident playing with Kuya LA. I’ve played with him for how many years, alam na namin ‘yung isa’t isa, and anjan pa rin siya to guide me…,” he said. “Excited ako before the game kasi I know makakasabay ko siya sa court. Kuya LA is a winner, he knows how to win, and that’s why he set the tone coming to this game.”
It turns out, Thompson had every right to be excited. That winner made the winning plays Ginebra needed in Game 3, and Thompson took the cue. So did Maverick Ahanmisi and Justin Brownlee.
And now we have a series.
