Seeing LA Tenorio’s exploits to will Ginebra past San Miguel in Game 6 of their PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup semis battle lit a fire within Chris Ross.
The 40-year-old playmaker witnessed how the revered ‘Tinyente’ turned back the clock and helped the Kings force a decider in the best-of-7 affair. That inspired him to do the same — whenever given the chance.
“I’m a competitor. And not playing in the last game, it hurt my feelings,” he reflected.
“And then seeing LA doing what he did, it was super inspiring to me.”
Ross logged zero minutes for the Beermen last Sunday night and sat for the entirety of a match as crucial as Game 6, where the team could’ve closed it out since they held a 3-2 lead.
He admitted that it crushed him inside, since he knows what he can bring to the table, especially in a high-stakes affair. It also didn’t help that his fellow veteran — barely used in the playoffs — beat them.
(C) PBA Images
Tenorio finished with 11 points, all of which he scored in the fourth quarter, including the eventual game-winning trey with 3.1 ticks left for the 88-87 win.
Still, he has nothing but profound respect for the future Hall of Famer, and he expressed as much entering Game 7 on Wednesday.
“I had a chat with LA before the game, and told him how I felt about him — just his journey and everything that led to him doing what he did, it really inspired me,” said Ross, who has also worked with Tenorio in Gilas Pilipinas before.
And the do-or-die clash would turn out to be his opportunity to play like The Ironman. The former BPC finally got his playing time following a talk with Coach Leo Austria, and took full advantage of it.
He played for a total of 28 minutes and 46 seconds off the bench, and finished with a season-high 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting. He also had three rebounds, seven assists, and four steals to star in their 100-93 victory.
Ross scored 10 of his points in the deciding period alone, including five in a crucial 10-5 assault to inflate a narrow four-point lead to a 98-89 advantage with 2:12 left in the game — the run that put San Miguel ahead for good.
And soon, the Beermen would find themselves celebrating at center court inside the SMART Araneta Coliseum. They return to the Philippine Cup Finals for the second time in a row, huge thanks to one of the ‘Death Five’ remnants.
(C) PBA Images
“I told Coach…. We had a talk yesterday. I told him that I’m a winner, I just wanna win by any means,” the 10-time champion said shortly after the game.
“I don’t care how it gets done. I step on to the plate, I told him that no one competes harder than me, no one plays harder than me,” he added.
No doubt that he has proved all that time and again. And that’s big thanks to the inspiration he drew not just from Tenorio but from his son, Caius, whom he brought to the Big Dome’s media room for the postgame presser.
“It comes from this little guy right here,” the 16-year pro from San Antonio said.
“The ‘want’ to win, I’ve always had it. But to see him coming into my life, it’s multiplied that much more.”
Ross just couldn’t be grateful enough to get the chance to show that he’s still got it, even at this point in his illustrious career.
“I was just thankful that I was given the opportunity to showcase what I can do,” expressed the two-time PBA Press Corps Finals Most Valuable Player.
“I’ve done it plenty of times and all that I was thinking about since Sunday night was getting my chance and when I have my chance, I want to take full advantage of it.”
#WATCH: Coach Leo Austria revealed he spoke with Chris Ross after Game 6 — and Ross responded big time, leading San Miguel to the #PBA2025 Finals! 🏀#ReadMore 👉 https://t.co/GbjbpJ8y6E
📹 @justinebacnis /Tiebreaker Times pic.twitter.com/15CtzOALJG
— Tiebreaker Times (@tiebreakertimes) July 9, 2025
