Win over Terrafirma allows Ginebra to soak in revelry of PBA All-Star weekend

Coach Tim Cone and Barangay Ginebra can at least focus on fun and games for the next few days without worrying about the second-to-beat advantage they can clinch before selecting members of the Gin Kings contingent to come to Passi City, Iloilo province, on Thursday.

“It’s going to be more fun than work,” said Cone, who won’t arrive until the next day to take part in an activity that will coach Team Japeth against Team Scottie this weekend at the City of Passi Arena.

Cone will be forced to think of work amid the revelry of the midseason extravaganza has Ginebra suffered an upset loss to Terrafirma the previous night at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City.

Ginebra survived Terrafirma’s stout position and claimed a 109-104 win to secure a quarterfinal bonus with an 8-2 win-loss record. Defeat will force Gin Kings to beat TNT Tropang Giga on March 16 to avoid falling into the second scenario to win.

“It was like a championship game for us,” Cone said. “We really have to come out and win this game because we shouldn’t lie in the penultimate game and lose to TNT and go down to fifth or sixth and have to beat them twice.”

‘We are not free yet’

But the Gin Kings need to hurdle the tough Dyip side who have nothing at stake but the hope of ending another miserable conference and the season on a winning record.

Justin Brownlee had 38 points while Jamie Malonzo’s dunk closed the final tally for the Gin Kings going into the All-Star break.

“We played a bit tight. We weren’t free, easy and flowing just because of the size of the game,” said Cone, who saw Jordan Williams lead the Terrafirma crew leading four times in the fourth quarter.

Some of the members of the Ginebra contingent who were among the large group that arrived at the Iloilo International Airport, were Japeth Aguilar, Scottie Thompson, Christian Standhardinger, Malonzo, Jeremiah Gray and Nards Pinto.

Also part of the delegation here are some members of the Ginebra staff and assistant coach Richard del Rosario, who will call the shots for Team Great against Team Stalwarts on Saturday.

Also scheduled were side events that included a Slam Dunk contest which Malonzo decided to skip due to a sore knee.

Malonzo and the rest of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) All-Star delegation spent Thursday touring the city for activities such as courtesy calls with Passi City officials and meet-and-greet sessions with fans.

While it was another busy week for the Ginebra personnel, Cone is glad that Brownlee will finally get a chance to relax and recharge after a grueling few weeks not only for Ginebra, but also for Gilas Pilipinas in Fiba (International Basketball Federation). Asian World Cup Qualifiers.

A fun entry

“Thank God, Justin’s going to rest and get ready for the playoffs,” Cone said before joking, “we’re tied to the bed and he’s going to have to sleep all over and sleep for the next five days.”

While Malonzo will be an interesting entry in the Slam Dunk contest, PBA commissioner Willie Marcial said here that he will not impose anything on the electrifying swingman except for a quick recovery.

“He told me he wanted to do a dunk contest but he was bothered by his knee,” Marcial said.

“I told him not to do it again. If this is a 3-Point Shootout, I’ll let him roll over. But the Slam Dunk contest? He might get hurt and I might get blamed by the team and the fans,” he said.

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