ANTIPOLO — Dalph Panopio finally logged the minutes befitting of a high pick in Blackwater’s narrow loss to TNT in Tuesday’s PBA Commissioner’s Cup affair.
After hardly seeing action in their previous outings, including a DNP in their lone win thus far against Magnolia, the rookie guard saw action for 31 minutes and produced 17 points, nine rebounds, four assists, and a pair of steals.
Getting back his usual playing time coincided with the debut of interim head coach Pat Aquino, and the newly-appointed mentor himself said that it’s part of the tweaks and fixes he’s trying to make after taking over from Jeff Cariaso.
“That’s part of the plan,” he told members of the press moments after their 99-94 defeat, their fifth of the midseason joust, at the Ynares Center here.
The Bossing are still trying to get used to the new leadership, but Panopio showed how much he has bought in by repaying the 54-year-old’s trust.
That was evident especially in the fourth quarter, when he scored nine of his points to play a key role in their fourth-quarter chase. He eventually turned the run into a major threat when they managed to cut the gap to one, 95-94.
(C) PBA Images
But the defending conference champions showed poise, with Calvin Oftana and Bol Bol coming through for the final blows to put the Bossing away.
Nonetheless, it was a good fight for Aquino and his boys, particularly Panopio, who also shot 5-of-10 from the floor and went 6-for-6 from the foul line.
The former Gilas Pilipinas Women strategist said that giving the third overall selection of the 2025 PBA Rookie Draft that kind of exposure is part of their plan to maximize the team’s more touted talents.
“It’s not just a marching order from Boss Dio to use our picks,” he said, referring to team owner Dioceldo Sy.
“It’s about time we use all the top picks that we have, and expose them to what we need — what the team needs.”
The same goes for the rest of the Bossing, as they’re trying to construct another competitive team under the decorated bench tactician.
“I think that will always be on the line, na we’re gonna make sure everybody gets to have that, sabihin nating, playing time,” Aquino said.
“Hopefully we’ll do more next time.”
