Vic Manuel has always been known as one of Alaska’s aces on defense — so much so that Milkmen head coach Alex Compton has ribbed him to take shots, the 30-year-old admitted.
“Yun nga, lagi ako niloloko ni Coach Alex, sinasabi niya sa’kin na mahiyain nga raw ako tumira,” said the six-foot-four Manuel with a chuckle.
“Lagi niya ‘ko sinasabihan ng ganon.”
So the six-year pro obliged.
On Sunday against the Blackwater Elite, Manuel shot 13-of-18 from the field, shooting his way to a career-high 27 points to lead the Aces to their first win in the 2018 Commissioner’s Cup, 93-74.
Fifteen of his points came in the fourth quarter alone, helping the Aces steady the ship as the Elite surged back from 30 points down and knocked to within seven early in the said chapter.
“Vic is just a scorer,” lauded Compton. “He’s got an uncanny knack for making shots… He’s got an uncanny control of the ball, even if his body is going sideways, going against bigger guys.
“He was fantastic.”
But for the Nueva Ecija native, his new career-high — which eclipses his previous record of 26 two Commissioner’s Cups ago — was all brought upon by his readiness to play whenever checked in.
“Ready lang ako ipasok ni Coach kasi nga alam ko yung playing te ko medyo limited ngayon, kasi may import kami,” he said. “Ready lang ako maglaro every time na ipapasok niya ‘ko.”
Manuel’s game was surprising since his stats had seen a bit of a drop — it usually occurs to locals during the import-laden conferences — but then, he proved otherwise.
So after Sunday’s outing, the barrel-chested power forward makes it known that he’ll now try to be more assertive on offense in the coming games, since he is one of the Aces’ options.
“Titira at titira pa rin ako e, kahit anong sabihin niya (Compton). Nasa option naman ako pagdating sa scoring.”
