MANILA, Philippines – All is not lost for Barangay Ginebra import Tony Bishop, believing that the Gin Kings can still turn their fortunes around in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup.
Bishop and Ginebra face elimination going into Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinals against San Miguel on Sunday, January 28, at the Mall of Asia Arena as the Beermen sit on a comfortable 2-0 series cushion.
“Oh yeah, until it’s over with. Until the fat lady sings, like we say,” said Bishop when asked if he still likes the Gin Kings’ chances of overcoming that deficit.
“We’re going to keep going hard. They’re up two. We have to win next game and take it one game at a time. We have to make sure that we come out strong, come out hard, and win the game.”
Coming back from that deep hole, though, is a tall order for Ginebra, considering San Miguel has been the hottest team in the PBA.
Featuring a talented import in Bennie Boatwright and a star-studded local cast led by seven-time MVP June Mar Fajardo, the Beermen ride on a blistering eight-game winning streak.
“They have everything. They have shooters outside, they got big presence inside. They got June Mar. They got guys who can give you 20 any given night, three or four threes in a row every night,” said Bishop.
But Bishop finds comfort in the fact that the Gin Kings have been able to keep the games close, losing Game 1 by just a single possession and dropping Game 2 by 10 points.
“We’re there every game. We’re not getting blown out. We’re right there. It’s just a couple of mistakes that we got to tweak, we got to fix, so we can win next game,” said Bishop.
Although the Gin Kings have hit a sudden slump, Bishop has been a steady force, averaging 22.5 points and 10 rebounds in the first two games of the semifinals.
He said Ginebra only needs fine-tuning on both ends.
“We just have to fix some stuff on our defense. On offense, we got to make sure that we’re continuing to score the ball, continue to find guys open at their spots,” said Bishop. – Rappler.com