A sweep is far from his mind but Bay Area head coach Brian Goorjian is excited about the prospect of clinching the first PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals ticket.
The Dragons on Friday night beat San Miguel once more through a decisive 114-95 win for the commanding 2-0 lead in their best-of-five semis series, giving themselves a clear shot of finishing things off in Game Three on Sunday.
“We want to do everything we can to win when we can,” offered the world-renowned mentor shortly after the game at the Philsports Arena in Pasig.
“Play one game at a time. I’m not thinking [of] sweep. I’m just thinking about the next game, and trying to win that. And, keep this momentum going.”
Goorjian is not thinking past the Beermen but the opportunity has presented itself, and his Dragons would definitely want to take a swing at it.
Because for him, a chance like that does not come by easily. Plus, it would make the guest team’s maiden campaign together even more memorable.
“I keep saying, privileged, honor, all that. [If] You’re in coaching [for] a long time, and you don’t get many opportunities to win a championship.
“We finished on top, we had that advantage to get to the semifinals, now you have an opportunity like this,” Goorjian said. “My sound to our team all the time, this team won’t be the same again, it’s a one-off opportunity.”
“Young guys sometimes don’t realize that. You can play your whole career and not win a championship,” added the 69-year-old, who’s touted as the most successful bench tactician in Australian basketball.
Furthermore, it would be such an honor for him and the rest of the ball club from Hong Kong should they really accomplish that goal of theirs.
“We’ve got an opportunity to do something special and we just want to make sure we leave no rock unturned right now — from a coaching standpoint, from a recovery standpoint, from a playing standpoint,” he said.
“When you look at the game that was played prior to us and this team, it would be a real honor to get to that grand final and we’re close. I’m excited.”
Then again, it isn’t lost on Bay Area that there’s still business to be taken care of, and that’s by preparing for another war with San Miguel.
“Yeah, we know it’s close, but I say don’t look at the scoreboard, concentrate on each possession, and again, it’s another one where you get a day, and then you’re playing again,” said the winner of six NBL titles.
“Exhaustion is a part of this and how you handle fatigue and how you play when you’re tired, and what you do in between games,” Goorjian furthered.
“So, it doesn’t stop when we walk out of this room.”
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The second game of each PBA gameday is live-streamed on SMART Sports.
