TNT head coach Chot Reyes is looking at Friday’s PBA Governors’ Cup match versus NorthPort as a crucial one, but not just because a win would help his side clinch a coveted twice-to-beat advantage for the quarterfinals.
For the champion bench tactician, he feels that going up versus the Batang Pier will be a good test for his streaking Tropang Giga moving forward.
“I know we’re in for a very, very tough battle on Friday against NorthPort, which is the hottest team in the league now,” he said after their 127-107 win over Terrafirma Wednesday that clinched them a playoff ticket.
“So that’s where we’re going to be tested. We’ll see how well we play there,” Reyes continued.
NorthPort has become the hottest team in the league with five straight wins to boot, a streak they’ve pulled off after starting out at 0-5.
That streak saw the Batang Pier deal both Meralco and Magnolia their first losses of the conference before taking down Phoenix Super LPG, the still-winless Blackwater, and then the Dyip just last Saturday.
But the Tropa are heading into the match hot as well. Wednesday’s win was actually their fourth in a row — that, despite the two-week break they had as some of their players represented Gilas in the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers.
Still, it doesn’t make Reyes and Co. less worried, as he’s bracing for what he called the ‘offensive juggernaut’ his crew will have to contain.
“It has to be a defensive mindset,” said the outspoken bench tactician, when asked how his wards should approach the match. “We have to find a way to stop the NorthPort offensive juggernaut. I mean, all those guys are buckets.”
On top of their concerns, of course, is Robert Bolick, someone Reyes has become very familiar with as the star guard were part of the team that battled India and New Zealand in the Qualifiers two weeks ago.
Photo by PBA Images
The San Beda great has been on a tear since returning to NorthPort. In fact, he was the PBA Press Corps Player of the Week from period March 2-6 with averages of 25.5 points, 11.5 assists, and 9.0 rebounds.
Bolick deservingly earned the nod for he was a huge reason why the Batang Pier have moved closer to the quarterfinals.
“The best we could do is just make life difficult for him,” said Reyes. “Make him work for his shots, and hope that he misses more than he makes.
“In the end, what I’ve learned about super offensive players like Robert Bolick is you can only do so much. We just have to make sure that we plan our defensive schemes well, and execute them,” he furthered.
But then again, it’s not just Bolick that TNT is wary of. There’s also the like of import Jamel Artis, and, of course, the evergreen Arwind Santos.
Photo by PBA Images
“Their import, Jamel (Artis); Robert Bolick; we know Arwind Santos is playing some of the best basketball of his life; (Jamie) Malonzo as well. Those guys are all buckets,” offered Reyes.
“If we defend the way we defended tonight, I think we’re going to be in trouble. So in terms of approach, it has to be a defensive approach. We have to be able to defend against NorthPort on Friday,” he added.
Friday’s match will be the final elimination round game of the tilt, and also TNT’s last in its grueling schedule — a situation that the team got into as the PBA accommodated their request to adjust the schedule for the FIBA window.
Reyes has admitted many times in the past how difficult such has been for his crew, but they’ve altogether decided to look at it at another way.
“The way we look at it is it’s the test for us on how well we will do in the playoffs. I mean, if we get through this like you said, a grueling schedule, then I think it’s going to prepare us,” said the national team head coach.
“The good thing about that situation is that it’s going to prepare us for the playoffs. The bad thing is, it might not get us into the playoffs because of how tough that schedule is,” Reyes furthered.
“That’s why I said we’re just fortunate to have this opportunity to win a game on Friday that I think is going to get us the twice-to-beat advantage. But, we are not looking past NorthPort at all.”
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