Apparently, the past week wasn’t enough for Troy Rosario to heal.
The veteran bruiser turned in subpar numbers in Ginebra’s loss to TNT in Game 1 of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals as he’s still nursing an ankle sprain.
“Lumobo ankle ko kanina dahil doon sa ankle sprain,” he said moments after their 95-89 defeat to his ex-team at the Mall of Asia Arena on Friday night.
It could be recalled that Rosario got hurt during their semifinal closer against NorthPort just last Friday at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
He allayed fears back then and was optimistic that he’d be able to recover soon based on the prognosis of team physical therapist Arcee Cua.
In fact, they dedicated almost the whole week to rehabilitation until the 33-year-old rejoined team practice the day before the Finals opener.
But all that time wasn’t enough for him to be fully healthy.
He did manage to score eight points on 3-of-7 shooting from the field but only hauled down two rebounds, and that’s all because of his ankle issue.
“‘Di rin ako makatalon masyado. Kasi masakit talaga ‘pag bumabagsak,” said Rosario, who averaged 13.0 points and 7.2 rebounds in the semis.
Still, he’s determined to play through the pain.
“Finals na eh. Kailangan na tiisin,” said the 10-year pro. “Siyempre ‘yung minutes ko importante rin sa team. Kumbaga kasama na ako sa rotation, so ‘pag nawala ako malaking ano rin sa team.
“So ako, kaya naman tiisin, lalaro pa rin ako,” continued Rosario, who’s taking painkillers just to play.
“Medyo pigil lang ‘yung galaw, pero at least nasa loob.”
