There’s no denying Arvin Tolentino’s ability to put the ball through the hoop, but that is not the only thing he wants to do whenever he graces the hardwood.
The NorthPort star aims to be more well-rounded and involve his teammates further, and if anything, Sunday saw how committed he is to that goal.
Tolentino notched his first-ever career triple-double as he finished with 23 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists to power the Batang Pier to a skid-stopping 133-107 victory over Terrafirma in the PBA Season 49 Governors’ Cup.
“Isa ‘yun sa mga goal ko,” he said shortly after the dominant win at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium. “For the past few conferences, I led the team in scoring.
“Gusto ko, rebounds. Rebound is an effort. Assist is playing with your teammates, getting your teammates involved,” added the 28-year-old.
Tolentino hit the headlines barely two weeks ago when he erupted for 51 to power his side to a 135-109 win over Converge – at NAS, too.
(c) PBA Images
Yet what hasn’t been talked about much is the way he’s filling up the stat sheet by collecting the numbers in the very facets he mentioned.
Before dropping the 50-piece, the 6-foot-5 winger finished with a 10-10-9 performance versus the Dyip during their first meeting last August 23.
Coincidentally, he’d complete the rare feat in their second encounter, becoming the first local to do so since Beau Belga had a 25-12-10 stat line in Rain or Shine’s 110-90 win over the FiberXers in the Season 48 Philippine Cup.
Then again, racking up the stats isn’t solely for the sake of doing as much, but his way of leading the Batang Pier through things other than scoring.
“I’ve been leading the team in scoring for a few conferences, so ‘yun din ‘yung tinitignan ng mga teams,” said the 10th overall pick by Barangay Ginebra in the 2019 Draft.
“I have to be mature enough to recognize that.”
