If there was a stat for how many whistles were blown in a single basketball game, Wednesday night’s Game Four semifinal clash between the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel and Star Hotshots could be up there.
The Barangay managed to tie the best-of-seven series to 2-2 after a 93-86 victory in front of 12,178 people inside the SMART-Araneta Coliseum, but, the story was more about the Hotshots and the number of fouls they committed.
Once the stat sheet was published, a glaring sight was spotted right away. In terms of team fouls, the Hotshots finished with a whopping 36, which translated to 24-of-33 shots from the charity stripe by the Barangay.
Ginebra, meanwhile, only had half of Star’s fouls, committing only 18.
Every Hotshot that was fielded in the game were whistled with fouls, and two of their best players were the most affected — Paul Lee and Mark Barroca, whose respective games were neutralized due to the calls.
Even rookie Jiovani Jalalon, who stepped up in Star’s guard problems and led the Hotshots with 16 markers, lamented the two’s foul-plagued outing, saying that them being restrained and playing limited were a factor in their loss.
“Siyempre malaking kawalan. ‘Pag sa dulo nagfo-focus na yung mga kuya eh,” said Jalalon.
And both Lee and Barroca were left confused with how the officiating went through especially in the game’s final stretch.
The 5’10” Barroca was the most ravaged by the referees’ whistles. The five-year veteran fouled out of the game still with 8:39 on the clock in the final period, and as a result, Barroca finished with just a measly four points.
“Gulat nga ako eh. Siguro sobrang aggressive ko lang sa depensa kaya adjust na lang ako sa next game,” said Barroca.
“Hindi natin control yun e. Ang sa amin lang, kailangan naming mag-adjust.”
On the other hand, Lee could have added more points to his nine-point output, but two straight calls against him — one against Kevin Ferrer on a rebound play and the other off an offensive foul — thwarted his rhythm.
“I don’t know what kind of… ‘Di ko masabi. ‘Di ko alam kung ano yung tinawag sa’kin nun eh,” said Lee.
“Nawala yung momentum ko talaga doon. Going to fourth na yun eh, dikit na dikit yung laban. Tapos tinawagan na ko ng back-to-back fouls.”
Damage has already been done, and the series has now went down to a virtual best-of-three. And for Lee and Barroca, the Hotshots can not cry over spilled milk as they only have a day break before stepping onto the hard court once again.
“Wala naman na tayong magagawa doon, natawag na. So, move on na lang,” lamented the 27-year-old.
“Sobrang sama ng laro namin. Bawi na lang next game,” furthered Barroca.
