Test of character

Purefoods has finally broken into the win column in the PBA Philippine Cup. The Star Hotshots downed Globalport, 81-75, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum last night after starting the conference 0-2.

It wasn’t an easy win. Purefoods battled back from 18 down and leaned on Mark Barroca’s 15-point eruption in the fourth period to pull off the pulsating win. The largest Hotshots margin was the final gap of six. Batang Pier team manager B. J. Manalo said Globaport still has a lot of rice to eat as a young team in the league. But just the same, there were positives in the Batang Pier’s loss – the way Globalport played defense in the first period was championship-class and Stanley Pringle’s early play was so explosive that not even Marc Pingris could hold him down.

Manalo said the talk about coach Pido Jarencio’s job in jeopardy was just that – all talk. “I think it was Boss Mikee’s way of shaking up the team after we lost to NLEX,” said Manalo referring to team owner Mikee Romero. “From what I know, we’re sticking it out with coach Pido. We’re a young team, still maturing.  We’ve got a lot to learn and improve on.”

For Globalport, it’s like starting from scratch after joining the league in 2012-13. The Batang Pier has never qualified for the semifinals in any conference and in two seasons, has won only 14 of 70 games. In the offseason, Globalport brought in five rookies – Pringle (1st overall by Globalport, 2014, Paolo Taha (3rd round by Kia, 2014), Roider Cabrera (undrafted, 2014), John Pinto (2nd round by Globalport, 2014) and Anthony Semerad (1st round by Globalport, 2014) and five veteran acquisitions – Jojo Duncil, Mark Isip, Nonoy Baclao, Keith Jensen and Yancy de Ocampo. The only holdovers are Terrence Romeo, Alex Cabagnot, Kelly Nabong, Ronjay Buenafe and Jewel Ponferada.

Globalport hasn’t beaten the Purefoods franchise in eight games since entering the league so it’s a jinx that’s hard to break. For Purefoods, a slow start isn’t something new but it’s driving coach Tim Cone up the wall. In the Philippine Cup last season, Purefoods (then playing as San Mig Coffee) opened 0-3 and 1-5, the only win a harrowing double overtime squeaker over Air21. But the team hung on and won the championship in a six-game series over Rain Or Shine.

Against Globalport last Friday, Purefoods got off on the wrong foot as the Batang Pier held the Hotshots to 15 points on 38 percent shooting in the first period. Pingris, making his first appearance this season after a two-game sit-out to rest from the FIBA World Cup and Asian Games, was burned by Pringle in their matchup at the onset. Pringle sizzled for 12 points in the first 12 minutes.

“We’ve put Ping on point guards before,” said Cone. “But this time, Ping was giving Pringle a little more space to shoot.” Pingris, who’s probably Cone’s best defender anywhere on the court, was asked to do a lot in the game. He scored, rebounded, trapped and took on guards and bigs alike. The reason why Pingris sagged off on Pringle was to give himself space to scurry back for rebounds and it was a gamble that didn’t pay off.

Globalport’s lead ballooned from 11 at the end of the first period to 16 at the half, prompting Cone to give his boys a stern dressing down in the dugout. Purefoods played with token intensity in the first two periods and it infuriated Cone who disdains listlessness. “I wanted to fire up the guys,” said Cone. “I asked them when do we forget about last season.” Cone meant it was time to shake off the championship hangover as the team was coming off a Grand Slam and four conference titles in a row.

But it wasn’t as if Cone was playing with a loaded deck. James Yap was in civvies and Ian Sangalang is lost for the conference with a torn ACL. There’s no new face in the Hotshots lineup except for veteran Don Allado, a 37-year-old veteran who was Alaska’s Fil-Am direct hire in 1999 when Cone was the Aces coach. “Don’s career started with Tim and hopefully, ends with him,” said Allado’s father and agent Caloy. “It’s like going full circle in the PBA.”

Cone made a key adjustment in the second half as he went small with Barroca and Justin Melton combining in the backcourt. In a snap, the complexion of the game turned as Purefoods started to push and dictate the pace. Suddenly, the Batang Pier went cold from the floor, hitting only 32 percent in the third quarter compared to 52 percent in the first period. At the start of the fourth, Globalport’s lead was down to two. Down the stretch, the Hotshots withstood a gallant stand by Cabagnot to win.

Instead of defending Pringle out in the perimeter, Pingris concentrated on trapping off his opposing big, protecting the rim and collaring rebounds in the second half. Barroca tired out Pringle who scored only six points in the second half, two in the fourth period on a put-back. The intensity that Cone demanded of his team showed in the fight-back. Globalport wilted under the pressure and just couldn’t sustain to hold back the Hotshots.

Purefoods’ balanced attack was key. Aside from Barroca, Allein Maliksi did a lot of damage with 20 points. P. J. Simon hit 12 and Joe De Vance, who’s a perfect fit in Cone’s triangle, contributed 10 points, three rebounds and five assists. Pingris had nine points and a game-high 17 boards.

For Purefoods, there’s still a tall mountain to climb. Cone’s consoling thought is the Hotshots are back on track and they passed a huge test of character in hacking out the win over Globalport without Yap and Sangalang. Purefoods’ next game is against Barangay Ginebra at the Big Dome on Nov. 9 – by then, Yap may be back in uniform.