Jio Jalalon believes that the Magnolia Hotshots had been too eager to go up 3-1 over the NLEX Road Warriors in the 2018 Philippine Cup semifinals, so much that they somehow forgot the task at hand in Game Four, Friday night.
The Road Warriors, whom the Hotshots have beaten two consecutive times in Games Two and Three, came out with a sense of urgency and sprinted past Magnolia, 91-79, to tie the best-of-seven series to two games apiece.
“Nung first half pa lang, wala na gigil na talaga kaming lahat. Parang na-out of focus din kami,” lamented the sophomore point guard after the match at the Mall of Asia Arena. “Siguro parang gusto na manalo agad. Tingin ko lang ah.
“Pero siyempre, yung NLEX, ‘di magpapatalo yan.”
That ‘gigil’ factor truly took its toll on the Hotshots, especially in the opening minutes of the third canto, as they could not get anything going for them. As a result, NLEX dropped 14 straight points en route to a 55-39 lead.
That then became the beginning of a one-sided affair in favor of the Road Warriors, and the latter’s lead rose to as high as 17 points, 82-65, after Kiefer Ravena’s crafty lay-up with less than five minutes left to play.
Even Jalalon appeared to have been affected by the overeagerness he had pointed out. He was Game Three’s brightest star, as he led Magnolia with 25 points, but in Game Four, he was limited to just 10 markers on 11 shots.
“Meron naman talagang laro na ganito eh, kahit maganda laro mo last game. Maii-scout ka rin ng kabilang team — ‘di natin hawak yun,” expressed the pride of Cagayan de Oro, who has been averaging 11.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 5.8 assists this series.
The Magnolia-NLEX series has now been touted to go longer with the way games have been played. And for the former Arellano Chief, all that he and his teammates can do is to prepare for tougher battles ahead.
“Kailangan maka-recover yung mga katawan namin kasi kulang na nga kami,” said Jalalon.
“Nakuha nila yung Game Four, so wala na kaming magagawa. Kailangan na namin i-rest yung katawan namin para makabawi.”
