English
“Naligo ng mura sa akin ‘to.” [This guy took a bath with my strong words] Coach Yeng fondly shares. Amazingly, Alas responds with his better, no, best play.
A very heated match took place at Ynares Sports Center in Antipolo. After making a reckless decision during a vital point in the fourth quarter of their game against TNT on Thursday, NLEX coach Yeng Guiao scolded Kevin Alas.
Kevin Alas on getting scolded by Guiao
The reprimand proved to be an effective catalyst for Alas and the turning point in NLEX’s 90 – 89 triumph over TNT in the PBA Season 47 Philippine Cup.
Around the eight-minute mark of the game, Alas decided to get fancy on a two-on-one break and threw a pass to Calvin Oftana that the sophomore couldn’t control. On the next play, Troy Rosario scored to give TNT an 80 – 72 advantage, forcing NLEX to request a timeout.
Guiao didn’t conceal his disappointment with the turnover when he returned to the bench and said a few choice words at Alas. This was a very timely and necessary decision by the coach.
“Of course, coach Yeng was mad at me,” said Alas about Guiao’s lecture. “Understandable siyempre. He expects a lot from me. After that, nakabawi ako. Siguro doon ako nakakuha ng motivation nung napagalitan ako.” [Understandable of course. He expects a lot from me. After that, I recovered. Maybe that’s where I got my motivation when I was scolded]
Alas avenged himself by scoring the final six points of NLEX’s 14 – 2 run to level the game at 80 after the team fell behind 78 – 66, the game’s largest deficit. Alas scored 11 of his 16 points in the NLEX triumph while wearing a mask after sustaining a nasal fracture in practice.
Alas’ response to Guiao’s expletive-filled diatribe, according to Guiao, demonstrated the type of player he is.
“Napagalitan ko siya. Actually, naligo ng mura sa akin ‘to kanina,”[I scolded him. Actually, I had a cheap bath ‘to earlier] Guiao disclosed. “Na-disappoint ako sa isang fastbreak namin na could have been done in an easier way pero ni-lob pass niya kay Calvin. Nawala ‘yung bola.” [I was disappointed with a fastbreak we had that could have been done in an easier way but he lob passed to Calvin. The ball is gone.]
“But after that, gumanda pa lalo ‘yung laro niya. It’s a tribute to his mental toughness. Player of lesser caliber or lesser stuff, baka nadidiscourage niya o pinanghinaan na ng loob. Pero ibang klase sila Kevin. Actually, ‘yung mga players namin, sanay na sa ganun kaya siguro lalo pang gumanda laro niya kanina,” [But after that, his game got even better. It’s a tribute to his mental toughness. Player of lesser caliber or lesser stuff, he may be discouraged or discouraged. But they are different Kevin. Actually, our players are used to that so maybe he played even better earlier] coach Guiao explained.
Alas stated that the mask he wore contributed to his poor performance in the first three quarters, with only five points entering the final canto.
“To be honest, medyo sluggish nga ako sa game kanina. Praise God kasi kahit si coach Yeng, masama ang laro ko, he kept me inside the court. Nagkaroon ng opportunities na maka-shoot, makapasa, maka-rebound, at the same time, ‘yung mga shoot namin, off the executions,” [To be honest, I was a bit sluggish in the game earlier. Praise God because even coach Yeng, my game was bad, he kept me inside the court. There were opportunities to shoot, pass, rebound, and at the same time, ‘our shoots, off the executions] said Alas.
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