Bad fall what?
Calvin Abueva has built a reputation as one of the toughest guys in the PBA, and on Wednesday night he once again showed that willingness to finish the game even if he was playing hurt.
Late in the fourth quarter with the game still on the line, Abueva hauled down a rebound against June Mar Fajardo but wasn’t able to maintain his balance, instead landing on his back as he slammed on to the Araneta Coliseum floor.
While the impact had him shaken up, Abueva, who is averaging 12.5 points and 8.1 boards in just 20.8 minutes of action this conference, opted to continue playing as it was still anybody’s ball game.
“Serious naman, pero hindi ko pwede i-give up ang sarili ko. Andun pa yung oras, hindi end of the battle, kaya go hard lang talaga,” he said.
The incident, reminiscent of a crash, did not affect Abueva however. He went on to score clutch free throws towards the end of the game to help the Aces win, 103-97. and stay in the hunt for an outright semi-finals berth.
Abueva finished with 17 points, 11 rebounds, and 5 assists in less than 25 minutes of action. With one game left, the Beast looks to maintain the momentum to improve their record.
“Siyempre nung last game natalo kami. Ngayon nagtrabaho kami ng husto. San Miguel ‘to malakas na team ‘to kaya pinagtrabahuhan talaga namin. Yung last game hindi na namin pwede pabayaan, kasi kailangan namin pumunta ng number one o number two,” he said.
