Beating one of the league’s powerhouses would send any team to cloud nine. Just ask the Columbian Dyip.
The Dyip earned a massive victory this early in the PBA season after taking down reigning, four-time Philippine Cup champions San Miguel Beermen, 124-118, in their season debut, Friday evening at the Cuneta Astrodome.
“Masarap sa pakiramdam. Masarap ang tulog mamaya kasi San Miguel, big team talaga eh,” said Jackson Corpuz.
Corpuz himself had a night to remember. The former PBA D-League mainstay was in his element, racking up 21 points on 9-of-16 shooting along with 11 rebounds, two assists, two steals, and a team-best three blocks in 28 minutes.
“Sa’kin, ang role ko pa rin maging energy guy, mag-hustle. ‘Di ko iniisip ‘yung points ko, basta makakuha ng stops, rebounds, steals, blocks. Dun ako makakatulong eh. Nagugulat na lang ako na ‘yung points ko andun na,” admitted the undrafted player from the 2014 Draft.
“Nagulat na lang ako kanina na Best Player of the Game. ‘Di ko naman ine-expect ‘yun.”
But aside from his stellar offensive showing, where he sank mid-range jumpers with ease, what stood out was the way he played defense – especially on June Mar Fajardo, who only had 16 points on 15 shots.
The reigning five-time Most Valuable Player had 13 boards, but negating his numbers were his seven turnovers.
“Kapag malaki, alam ko hindi siya makakapunta sa’kin kaya lagi kong sinasabihan mga wingman namin na tingnan ako sa gilid, lagi akong free. Pina-pwesto ko talaga si kuya JR sa gitna kasi zona na sila eh.
“Eh kapag binibigay sa’kin, ‘di na ko nagdadalawang-isip,” shared the 6-foot-3 Corpuz.
The Dyip have taken down a giant to start their Philippine Cup journey. So for Corpuz, he hopes that this will be a solid message to the other teams in the league who might have taken the now-five-year-old franchise lightly.
“Huwag silang magre-relax sa’min kasi meron silang mapupuntahan kapag ganun.”
