Gilas Pilipinas heavy grind takes toll on Romeo

MANILA, Philippines - Terrence Romeo, the scoring champ and Most Improved Player in PBA Season 40, is off to a rather slow start in the current season, forced to play cut-down minutes to recover from a grueling grind with Gilas Pilipinas during the PBA offseason.

With hardly a rest, Romeo struggled with a 2-of-8 shooting in Globalport’s losing 86-97 season debut against San Miguel Beer in a road game in Davao City.

He then picked up some rhythm in their next game against the Star Hotshots, firing away 20 points to help the Batang Pier to a 101-94 victory.

Globalport coach Pido Jarencio noted Romeo’s Gilas’ stint had its upside and downside.

A setback is that Romeo is weary just in the beginning of the new PBA season.

“His confidence improved but he’s a battered player. He’s tired and I have to pace him in the game,” said Jarencio.

Romeo made a major breakthrough last season, leading the league in scoring with 19.6 points on an average of 31.43 minutes a game.

On his rookie year, he normed 12.43 points while playing 26.97 minutes a game.

After seeing action in all of Globalport’s 35 games last season, the former FEU hotshot hardly got a rest, having to answer a call to serve  the national team.