Sean Anthony decided not to air his sentiments regarding the call that changed the complexity of the 2019 PBA Philippine Cup match between his NorthPort Batang Pier and the Phoenix Pulse Fuel Masters, Wednesday night.
Anthony had sunk a three-pointer all over the defense of Justin Chua with 47.8 ticks left to play. Unfortunately, his shot did not count, as the referees called for an offensive foul after contact with Chua – even if it happened long after the shot.
Had it counted, the Batang Pier would have led by three. But it went otherwise and they bowed to Phoenix, 96-98.
“It’s a lose-lose situation so I’d rather not comment on it.
“I’m trusting the PBA office to look into it. I gotta reserve my comment because nothing I can say can change anything and I don’t wanna get in trouble,” he said with a chuckle.
It was Batang Pier head coach Pido Jarencio who was left seething.
“Referees don’t decide the game. Okay? You don’t call an offensive foul like that,” the veteran mentor said. “Last one minute then you call offensive foul? And in the video, it’s so clear na wala. Okay? Referees don’t decide the game.
“Let the players win the game and lose the game. That’s it.”
Still, as disappointing as it was, Anthony – who finished with 20 points, nine rebounds, and four assists – is just looking at the positives of the loss, even if this is their third straight defeat, dropping their card to 2-3.
“I’m looking at the positives from the game. I’m proud of the guys for stepping up big,” said the nine-year veteran. “Guys stepped up. That’s probably the best defensive game I’ve seen our guys play.
“They worked really hard.”
