For so many years, veteran coaches Alex Compton and Louie Alas shared hundreds of battles together under the Alaska Aces umbrella, a relationship that resulted in a handful of championships.
But partnerships tend to end, no matter how long they last. The two had a reunion Wednesday night, but they were on opposite ends of the floor, as Compton’s Aces took on Alas’ Phoenix Fuel Masters.
After 48 minutes, Compton and the Aces reigned victorious, 93-75 — their fifth straight victory in the 2017-18 Philippine Cup. But the affable mentor made it known that, despite the huge win, he didn’t really win at all.
“I know it’s more about basketball but you know, sometimes, there are just things life works out. Right now, we got a healthy bunch of guys that had a good game against his team. But I did not, for one second, out-coach him,” he said.
“I’ve learned a lot from him. And as friends, I hope that I continue to learn from him. This is just a game where our guys played really well.”
Alas was then told what his pal had just said about him, and the amiable tactician couldn’t help but gush about such.
“Nice naman si Coach Alex, talagang mahal na mahal ako non eh. Thank you, pakisabi,” he responded.
Compton and Alas are treading opposite roads in the all-Filipino tournament. Compton is on a high, as the Aces have been winning this 2018, while Alas is having a tough time rebuilding the Fuel Masters, who have shown inconsistency with a 3-4 slate.
And for Alas, Wednesday evening’s loss was a class session for his young Fuel Masters. He hopes that his troops will be able to learn the culture that the seasoned tactician has helped build in the storied franchise.
“Ganda talaga ng laro nila defensively and offensively. Yung offense nila, resulting from good defense. Ganun din yung gusto kong maging kultura nitong team na ‘to, na talagang barometer is depensa,” said the 54-year-old.
“So far, on a scale of one to 10, nasa four pa lang ata kami, baka wala pa. We need to improve it a lot better than what we did today.”
