Robert Bolick admitted feeling a bit shy when he rejoined NorthPort for its PBA Governors’ Cup meeting with Meralco, Wednesday.
That’s because he only had little time to practice with the Batang Pier since his protracted negotiations following the expiration of his contract at the end of 2021. The talks lasted for over a month before he agreed to a new deal.
“Before the start of the game, nahihiya nga ako sa team kasi hindi pa ako nakapag-practice sa kanila,” the 26-year-old native of Ormoc shared.
“Diretso na ‘ko laro ngayon.”
But surely, his teammates do not and will not have much of an issue whatsoever in that, especially with the way their young star delivered.
In his first game back since December 17, Bolick came through with 22 points, seven rebounds, and six assists, helping NorthPort come back from 19 down for the 109-98 victory — their first win of the conference after a 0-5 start.
Making it all the more gratifying for the Pido Jarencio-mentored squad is the fact that they broke through by ending the Bolts’ unbeaten run.
Photo by PBA Images
“Sabi ko sa kanila, effort lang. Wala naman na ‘kong pakialam kung 0-5 kami. We just wanna win, and ‘yun, nabigyan namin ng panalo,” he said moments after the match at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
So motivated was Bolick to get that win that he didn’t mind at all the little rest he had. Barely 24 hours ago, the league’s leading scorer for locals practiced with Gilas Pilipinas at the Big Dome as part their buildup for the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers.
Bolick is part of the national pool for the meet set on February 24-28, where the Filipino cagers will battle Korea, New Zealand, and India.
“I just wanna win. Gusto ko lang talaga manalo e. ‘Yun naman ang pinaka-importante sa’kin,” said the San Beda product.
“Gusto namin manalo lang. Kasi winner kami e, yun yung gusto naming culture na malagay sa NorthPort.”
With morale surely sky-high following the triumph, Bolick and Co. now hope that they’ll be able to string together wins moving forward.
“First win, I hope tuloy-tuloy na,” he said.
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