With a bunch of capable scorers, veterans, and eager youngsters constantly trying to prove they belong, the gritty Mahindra squad has the tools to become a very competitive team in the league.
And after getting booted out of the Philippine Cup early, the Enforcers worked double-time during the interval between the Philippine and Commissioner’s Cups to develop better chemistry and maturity among themselves.
Mahindra definitely showed in its Commissioner’s Cup debut that it could do damage when playing as an organized team.
“In our preparation for this conference, we worked on our consistency. Our problem last time, we kept fighting and competing every game but we cannot finish games. Marami kaming close games na pwede namin maipanalo but because of inconsistency, natatalo kami,” Mahindra head coach Chito Victolero said Friday after the Enforcers outplayed the Globalport Batang Pier, 111-98.
It certainly looked like Mahindra was the team which made the semi-finals of the previous conference as they were very fluid with their offense. Seven players finished in double-digits for the Enforcers, which shot 13-for-28 from the outside and had 17 assists as a team.
KG Canaleta himself had 20 points in just one half. Later, he shared Mahindra paid attention to the “little things” during the break, and it worked well for the team.
“Mahaba na yung two weeks na binigay sa amin. Ako hindi ako nagbakasyon. Then kami ata yung pinakamaaga nagstart (ng training),” Canaleta shared.
“Isa yun sa mga pinagtrabahuhan namin. Yun nga, chemistry, little things, nag back to basics kami, yun ang ginawa namin.”
Having more time together, the Enforcers have shown they can be a dangerous threat if they get consistent contributions from many players.
“Now, we worked on the little things that could help us. Ngayon nakakafinish kami ng games. Everybody stepped up. Everyone wants to prove something. Ball movement, transition, depensa, lahat, total team effort,” Victolero added.
It could be a start of an uprising for the young franchise.
