ANTIPOLO – Though things seem pretty obvious at this point, Andrei Caracut still played it coy when asked about the reason behind his inspired play that catapulted Rain or Shine to the PBA Commissioner’s Cup semis Friday.
“Na-inspire lang ako kasi siyempre, nagtatrabaho ‘yung mga teammates ko,” he said after their 114-103 ouster of San Miguel at the Ynares Center here, drawing giggles from those inside the media room for the postgame presser.
“Nakikita ko kung paano sila magtrabaho. Nakaka-inspire na i-panalo ‘yung game na ‘to. Tama ba ‘yung sagot ko?” he added, with head coach Yeng Guiao, who was sitting just beside him, all smiles as well.
Caracut fired a playoff career-high 29 points, and part of the solid crowd that turned up was Capital1 star Bella Belen, further fueling speculations of a brewing romance between the two young professional athletes.
It’s actually the second time in this conference that the NU legend watched an Elasto Painters game. The first was back on April 21 at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium, although the team lost to Phoenix — its first after a 7-0 start.
Almost a month later, she finally witnessed the squad pull off a win, with the former La Salle guard the star. He came through a clutch hit to repel the Beermen and eventually book the first ticket to the Final Four.
Caracut knocked down a booming four-pointer, which was then followed up by a trifecta from Caelan Tiongson. The pair powered a 9-0 run for the 108-97 lead with 2:35 remaining, taking the wind out of the Beermen’s sails.
(C) PBA Images
Eventually, all of Rain or Shine would celebrate at center court, but some egged on the 30-year-old as they pushed him to Belen’s direction at the bleachers.
Whether or not the PVL All-Filipino Rookie of the Conference played a role behind his performance, it was nonetheless one to remember for Caracut
He went 6-of-12 from beyond the first arc and 1-of-2 from four on the way to his second career-best scoring output, just a few points shy of surpassing his record of 32, which he set — albeit in a loss — against Ginebra two seasons ago.
Turning serious, the native of Quezon said that it was actually his way of making it up to his teammates for the bouts, which he felt he under-delivered.
And even with such a remarkable game, Caracut refused to take all the limelight to himself, tipping his hat to the other Elasto Painters.
“Kailangan ko ring bumawi sa mga teammates ko. Ang dami kong mga games na medyo nada-down ko,” he said. “Di lang naman ako, ‘yung mga teammates ko, grabe, ganda ng laro — sina Caelan, Jaylen, lahat nag-contribute.
“Magandang panalo para sa amin.”
