Converge head coach Aldin Ayo had plenty of reasons to celebrate as he received a FiberXers victory on his 45th birthday on Saturday night.
His charges gave him a present in the form of a 106-99 win over Meralco, which also brought them back into the PBA Commissioner’s Cup win column. They’d previously suffered narrow losses at the hands of Bay Area and Magnolia.
The young mentor was showered with greetings upon entering the Willie Caballes Press Hall of the SMART Araneta Coliseum for the postgame press conference. And he expressed his gratitude for such.
But later on, he admitted that he does not celebrate his own day especially when at work, preferring to stay locked in on the task at hand.
“Well, manalo,” said Ayo when asked what his birthday wish was. “Pero I don’t really celebrate birthdays e, especially sa trabaho.
“Distraction kasi.”
The former college coach even apologized to some of Converge’s staff for missing the opportunity to show appreciation for their efforts.
“I have to apologize also sa mga team staff namin sa Converge, kasi I might have offended them,” said an apologetic Ayo.
“Kasi, merong cake dun, pero sabi ko, this is not the time to celebrate eh, this is a time to compete and win. Sorry, na-set aside ko ‘yun.”
For sure, though, all’s well now within the FiberXers camp following their win over the Bolts in a match that showed their character. They saved themselves from falling flat on their faces after squandering a 22-point lead.
“Of course, it feels good, especially coming from two consecutive losses. And the way we won today, showed our character. We lost the 20-point lead, but we were able to recover,” said Ayo.
And upon rejoining his side in their dugout, the rest of the team serenaded the neophyte PBA head coach with greetings again.
Still, Ayo is all business, with his sights now set on their next assignment: San Miguel Beer on October 21, Friday, at the Philsports Arena.
“We don’t celebrate birthdays. After this, we’re going to prepare for San Miguel.”
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The second game of each PBA gameday is live-streamed on SMART Sports.
