MANILA, 15 November 2007 — For a team that has so far gone undefeated in seven games, the last thing that coach Ryan Gregorio wants to enter the mind of his players is that they are undefeated.
“We don’t want to fall into that false sense of security,” Gregorio said, just minutes after Purefoods whipped Air21, 100-81, for a 7-0 card in the Philippine Cup eliminations at the Araneta Coliseum.
“It’s part of my job description, to make the players realize that we have not achieved anything yet,” added Gregorio, who minced no words in praising how his second unit stepped up.
Peter June Simon scored 13 points in the first 14 minutes off the bench and finished with 22 markers, leading three others in twin digits and all but one of 12 players in scoring.
“We have to develop that kind of spirit and character in our team that we will not focus on our past successes,” Gregorio added. “7-0 is over and done with. Our task at hand is our game on Saturday against Red Bull.” Roger Yap chipped in with 15 points and former MVP James Yap added 14 as the Giants extended their franchise-best run in trying to repeat as champion here for the second time in three years.
And of the last 11 teams ever to start at 6-0, nine of them went on to win the championship, quite an interesting piece of history for the Giants. The last team to pull off such a feat was Alaska in the 2003 Invitational Conference.
The loss was the fourth in six games for the Express, who have lost their last two by an average of 27 points, counting that 115-80 bamboozling they suffered at the hands of Sta. Lucia.
The Realtors, incidentally, sustained their murderous ways, building a 40-point lead at the half before completing a 97-63 massacre of the listless Coca-Cola Tigers in the second game.
Sta. Lucia held the Tigers to just 18 first half points and it was a stroll the rest of the way as the Realtors improved to 3-4 while dealing Coca-Cola its fifth straight defeat in a 1-5 card.
Without Alex Cabagnot, Egay Echavez and John Arigo, Coca-Cola totaled the seventh lowest halftime production in the history of the league. That 40-point first half deficit was easily the new all-time mark. Joseph Yeo and Kelly Williams each scored 16 points to pace the Realtors, who have defeated their last two foes by an average of 34.5 points.
Meanwhile, the league released six names making up the first list of nominees for the new commissioner.
Carlo Singson, a Filipino executive for NBA Asia, lawyer Chito Salud, telecommunications executive Lambert Ramos, businessman and player-agent Arben Santos, SBP secretary-general Patrick Gregorio and former PBA finance chief and banker Ricky Palou were nominated by various teams.
The league said that the nominees were named by members of the board without their knowledge and those who turn out to be interested candidates will then be interviewed.
Palou, the former San Miguel player and very close friend of late commissioner Emilio “Jun” Bernardino, told Arab News in a telephone interview that he is not interested, though he thanked whoever nominated him.
“I have a contract to run the Ateneo athletic program until 2010,” said Palou. “I’m happy where I am now because I deal with young people here and I can dip my hands in all sports (in the UAAP).” Singson is the logical choice, but it would be interesting to see if the PBA could make him leave his lucrative job in the NBA. Salud is the son of the eminent Rudy, the PBA commissioner who led the league during its most glorious years.
Ramos, meanwhile, has been in the list ever since Noli Eala stepped down and the league started its search for its new man. He reportedly turned down an offer to run the league in an interim capacity and is looking for the permanent post.
