There were times that LA Tenorio was seen clutching his flank, struggling to catch his breath after running up and down the court a few times.
“Nauubusan ka ng hangin,” he said.
“Kapag sobrang pagod ka, nauubusan ka ng hangin, second wind. Kasi siyempre, sa nangyari ‘di ba, sa akin six months akong hindi nag-basketball tapos kung ano-ano pinasok sa katawan ko.”
That was part of the struggles the Ginebra star had to endure early in his comeback from a months-long battle with stage 3 colon cancer.
Although he can play, it was a concerning sight to see, no doubt, given his state and age.
Fast forward to Friday and the 39-year-old has gotten over those obstacles. He proved himself as the spark that the Kings badly needed to take down Meralco and tie their PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup semifinal clash at two games apiece.
One of the vets surprisingly plugged into the starting unit by Coach Tim Cone, Tenorio helped facilitate the crowd darlings’ quick 16-2 start in Game 4.
That then set the tone for the dominant 90-71 victory against their rivals.
He finished with all-around numbers of seven points, four rebounds, six assists, and two steals in 22 minutes in an outing that enabled the Barangay to revert to their balanced attack after being locked down in the last two matches.
Eventually, Tenorio earned Player of the Game honors, which – per league stats chief Fidel Mangonon III – is his first since Game 2 of the 2022 Commissioner’s Cup Finals against Bay Area that saw him drop 22 points.
“Coach Tim mentioned it yesterday before practice. Ako naman, I’m always ready,” he said shortly after the game at the Mall of Asia Arena.
“Kung ilang minutes man ‘yan, I’m always ready. Even in practice, I always prepare myself to play,” he furthered.
“Kung ano ‘yung routine ko years ago, ‘yun pa rin ang ginagawa ko kasi I want to be ready any time.”
As he showed flashes of his old self, Tenorio couldn’t help but reflect on the road he trod to regain his game form after overcoming the dreaded Big C.
“Slowly but surely, I really made sure na every practice nakikisabay ako sa kanila,” said the 18-year pro out of Ateneo de Manila.
“We play 3×3 all the time, with the players na naglaro the last five minutes, ‘yung mga pinasok ni Coach,” he added, referring to the former Ginebra 3×3 guys in Ralph Cu and Donald Gumaru who are on the regular 5-on-5 squad now.
“We always play 3×3, kaya sobrang laki ng tulong nila sa akin. 3×3 kami parati, ‘yung rule ng 3×3 ganun, as in before practice. Tyinaga ko ‘yun. hirap, sakit katawan, siyempre with my age now, but laking bagay din kasi siyempre.”
And he’s fighting his way to elite form all while keeping his health in check. The regular monitoring continues and so far, so good, he says.
In fact, he was in Singapore before the game in Dasmarinas for his check-up.
“Actually, Monday-Tuesday, I was in Singapore. I didn’t practice before the Dasmarinas game. I had my regular, every three months check-up. Naka-schedule na, I cannot miss that. Blood test and check-up,” he said.
Thus, the immense gratitude on his part that despite all of that, he manages to still compete and play at such a high level.
“After everything that happened to me … I’m just grateful just to be part of this semifinals game. I’m really happy,” Tenorio said.
“Every game, I’m ready to go. Three minutes, four minutes, 20 minutes, 40 minutes, I always set my mind that I’m going to be ready to help the team.”
