Beau Belga can now focus on some much-needed rest and recovery after a worrisome past 24 hours for the veteran big man.
The Rain or Shine leader missed team practice a day before Game 2 of their PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup quarterfinal bout versus TNT on Sunday, as he had to fly to the province after his mother got rushed to the hospital.
“‘Yung mom ko kasi na-ospital. Kahapon I didn’t practice. I needed to go to the province,” he told reporters. “The good thing is, naiintindihan nina Coach ‘yung mga emergency na ganun, kailangan mong i-sacrifice ‘yung practice.”
Belga disclosed that he only returned to Manila on the morning of their game, but still made it a point to go to the Rizal Memorial Coliseum and suit up.
Rain or Shine went on to take the 121-113 decision to send the best-of-3 series to a decider, which takes place either on Wednesday or Friday.
The date depends on the other QF bracket between Meralco and NLEX being played as of this posting.
Whenever it may be, it’s a welcome development for the 37-year-old slotman as he would have more time to recover for the all-important Game 3.
“Actually, kababalik ko lang this morning. Medyo hesitant ako kasi nga wala akong tulog halos. Pero the good thing is, we survived this. ‘Yun lang naman gusto ko para makarecover ako, makakuha ng tulog, makapagpahinga.”
And he can put all of his attention to that all-important affair, with no more extra baggage to carry now that his mom is doing better.
“The good thing is, natapos na ‘yung problem ko sa ermat ko,” said the native of Gubat, Sorsogon. “Sana magtuloy-tuloy ‘yung pag-recover.”
The time they will have before Game 3 could also be an opportunity for Belga to recalibrate his form after scoring just a total of 11 points in the series’ first two games – after averaging 17.6 points in the elimination round.
None of that, though, hardly matters for the 16-year pro. “I don’t worry about my offense at all. Kasi ganun naman ako, hindi naman ako offensive guy,” he said.
“I’m really proud of the guys like Adrian, Jhonard, the consistency of Santi, laging nandoon talaga. Ako, I’m not gonna say anything about my offense. Kung darating ang opensa ko, darating at darating ‘yun,” he added.
“Kung wala naman I’ll find something na makakatulong sa team ko – giving assists, i-lead ‘yung grupo,” he continued. ‘Yun lang gusto kong mangyari.”
