The Star Hotshots have arguably the lightest remaining games in the league right now
Coming off two heartbreaking losses, the Star Hotshots needed to play with a sense of urgency against the TNT Katropa. And they did so, stifling the Katropa to a season-low 77-point output en route to an 11-point win.
“Happy talaga ako sa team dahil nag-iimprove. Hindi ko alam kung number one o two kami sa defense,” Star skipper Marc Pingris shared.
“Happy kami na every practice o every game, nag-iimprove siya kahit natatalo kami. Dun nag-fofocus si coach. Hindi sa offense.”
Star led for all but 21 seconds of the game and were able to out-hustle the TNT, gaining an 18-8 advantage in second chance points. Moreover, they did not let up even when the Katropa were rallying back late in the game.
“Yun yung madalas sabihin ni coach, lalo na nung sa Ginebra and then Alaska, kunin niyo ‘to bilang experience para sa next game, magamit niyo,” the 35-year-old added.
“Pag pasok nung game kanina, ang sabi niya, ‘hundred percent, kailangan ilabas niyo na, and then yung defense.’”
And now that they are in the thick of things with a 4-4 slate — good for eighth place, the eight-time PBA champion believes that they cannot let their guards down — even if their remaining games are against teams who have a combined 9-16 tally.
“Sabi ni coach na hindi kami puwede mag-celebrate dahil may gusto kaming puntahan. Ang madalas niyang sinasabi, be humble lang. May mga malalakas pa tayong kalaban,” the Pangasinan native stressed.
