When the going got tough, Barangay Ginebra San Miguel turned to Justin Brownlee and their defense to level their PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals series at 1-1.
Coming into Game 2 of the PBA Season 49 Commissioner’s Cup Finals, Tim Cone had a feeling Justin Brownlee would have a big game.
“We just had a feel tonight that Justin was feeling it, Justin was really moving,” Cone said shortly after the Kings held on to squeak past the TNT Tropang Giga, 71-70, to knot up the series at 1-1. “So we just kept feeding them and feeding them.”
When the smoke had cleared, Brownlee had 35 points across his name, nearly half of Ginebra’s entire output. Four of those points came in the last 2:04 of the game, when the Kings overhauled a 70-67 deficit.
“It’s like, we fed the beast because he had that kind of presence about him tonight that he was gonna do what it took. And so we ran almost all of our offense through him because he was feeling it. We can’t do that every night, but tonight was one of those nights where we felt he was feeling it.”
It would have been a looser defense, you know what I mean? It would have been another team and not talking text, probably would have had 50 or 60 tonight. I mean, he was like that kind of guy tonight. So, you know, we went with them and between him and the defense, it carried us to victory.
Shutting down RHJ
As brilliant as Brownlee was, Ginebra still could have lost the game were it not for two crucial defensive stops on Rondae Hollis-Jefferson down the stretch. Stephen Holt and Jamie Malonzo took turns making life difficult for RHJ, who shot just 6-of-23 from the field and stubbornly went against a double team twice with the game on the line.
“Tonight, it was definitely our defense,” Brownlee said. “Gotta give a lot of credit to Stephen and Jamie. They did an incredible job, but also our team defense. I think it was really good. Trying to stay home on their shooters, not letting them get too many open shots, especially in transition.
“So I think it was just all around a great team effort on defense for the team, but especially just gotta give a lot of credit to Jamie and Stephen. They played incredible defense on RHJ the whole night.”
Cone said they expected TNT to go to RHJ in crunch time, and they were ready for it.
“They know that down the stretch, if it was one shot to take, we’re going to get the ball to Justin,” he said. “So we know they’re going to try to get the ball to Rondae and Rondae is going to create. Stephen did a great job of containing him.
“And then, we fired him from the sides. And once he got his head down and the ball started getting loose, we did a good job of firing him. And no one person’s going to take RHJ, you one-on-one on us by themselves.
“So, Stephen knows that, Jamie knows that, and they know, as well as they’re playing defensively, it’s really a team defense that they’re getting to.”
The series could easily be 2-0 now in favor of TNT. Ginebra gave up a 14-3 run in the fourth quarter that turned the tide, and suddenly the Kings were staring at a 70-67 deficit in the last three minutes.
Cone’s frustration along the sidelines was palpable, as he was seen screaming at his team. Whatever he said, it worked.
“I was just screaming. I don’t know what I was saying. I was as angry as everybody else. There was no magic in the words that I might’ve said or did say. These guys just showed true grit all the way through the game. And we knew that we’re gonna have a chance in the series.
“We’re gonna have to show that character and that true grit and just really reach deep to make two stops down the stretch that were really incredible stops. And that’s just the way we’re gonna have to play to have a chance in this series.”
With the series now down to a best-of-five, Cone is hoping for similar success on RHJ in Game 3 on Wednesday.
“We’ll see what happens in Game 3,” he said. “If we can continue, or whether RHJ is going to have an adjustment to it. (TNT coach) Chot (Reyes) is one of the most brilliant adjustment coaches I’ve ever been around. So there’s going to be an adjustment there, but I think also that we have a chance to play a little better offensively. You know, we could shoot the ball a little bit better than we did.
Cone is also hoping that rookie RJ Abarrientos finally gets going.
“We need to get RJ untracked. I think that’s really going to be important for us to get RJ untracked offensively. But if we can do that, then we can maybe squeak out another game, Game 3.”
Banner Images courtesy of PBA Media Bureau.