Beau Belga refuses to use inexperience as an excuse now that Rain or Shine is two losses away from being swept in the PBA Governors’ Cup semifinals.
The veteran center believes that the present-day Elasto Painters have been exposed to enough competition and should no longer be offering any alibi whatsoever, especially after being blown out by TNT in Game 2 on Friday.
“Kasi nag-semis kami last time, all-Filipino,” he said moments after their 108-91 defeat at the SMART Araneta Coliseum, recalling their semifinal run in the Season 48 Philippine Cup for their first trip to the said stage in half a decade.
“Ang kaibahan lang ngayon, may import sila, which is si RHJ na kaya niyang dominahin. Ang ano namin, kailangan talaga namin gawan ng paraan.”
Since Yeng Guiao returned to Rain or Shine, the franchise has made it to the quarterfinals four times, and is now in its second semis stint after being swept by the mighty Beermen in last season’s all-Filipino wars.
The journey they have been on has convinced even the champion bench tactician that they should no longer see themselves as a youth-laden crew.
“Hindi ko na nga sinasabing bata sila eh,” Guiao said. “That’s becoming an excuse. Sabi ko, ‘Huwag niyo isiping bata tayo, [na] ngayon lang tayo nakakarating sa ganitong ano.’ ‘Wag na nating gawing excuse ‘yan.”
Belga himself even cited the 2012 Governors’ Cup as an example, saying that their batch back then was also filled with young players yet managed to find ways and eventually give the club its first-ever PBA championship.
Also handled by Guiao, that squad beat B-Meg in seven games behind Best Import Jamelle Cornley and eventual Finals MVP Jeff Chan, with ample support provided by Belga, Gabe Norwood, and a rookie Paul Lee, to name some.
“Kasi nung lumaban kami ng Finals ng 2012, puro bago kami eh. Pero nagawan namin ng paraan eh,” recalled the grizzled bruiser as they beat a team that had James Yap, Marc Pingris, and PJ Simon, with Tim Cone at the helm.
Belga opined, too, that most of the present-day Elasto Painters are now entering their primes sooner, thus his refusal to believe that they are less experienced compared to the defending conference champions.
“‘Pag sinabi mong bata, ‘yung mga 18-20 years old. Pero mostly sa amin, nasa bente-tres hanggang bente-singko na eh,” he said.
“Kumbaga, ‘yung mga edad na ng mga kasama mo, pa-peak na ‘yung ano eh. So hindi mo pwedeng sabihin na less experience kami,” he added.
All that they have to do, said Belga, is not just to find their touch from the outside but to simply find ways to retaliate and prevent being dragged down to an even more dangerous situation in the best-of-7 affair.
“Makadalawa kami OK na ako. Kasi nga I’m really positive of making it to the Finals. But yun nga, backs against the wall, 0-2, mahirap umahon sa 0-3 so we need to do whatever it takes pagdating ng Game 3 sa Dasma,” he said.
“‘Yun lang. Sa tingin ko ‘pag nakaisa magiiba. Magiiba ‘yung laro,” added Belga as Game 3 shifts to the City of Dasmarinas Arena in Cavite on Sunday.
It’s all on the players too, to elevate themselves to the level of their revered counterparts if they are to contend, according to no less than Guiao.
“Kailangang pa ring mag-mature. If you keep thinking na bata kami, may excuse kami, baka hindi ka na mag-improve,” offered the 65-year-old. “Kailangan talaga, pilitin mo na makapaglaro ka doon sa level ng kalaban mo.”
