SMB COACH EXPLAINS VIC MANUEL BENCHING IN FIRST THREE GAMES OF PBA FINALS

VIC Manuel finally made his presence felt for San Miguel in the PBA Philippine Cup Finals against Meralco.

Benched the last three outings, the veteran forward got some extra minutes in Wednesday’s Game 4 and delivered in a 111-101 win by the Beermen that tied the best-of-seven series at 2-2 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

The ‘Muscle Man’ finished with eight points in just seven minutes of play, while adding two rebounds and an assist. He was 3-of-4 from the field and a perfect 2-of-2 from the foul line, with no turnovers for a +-15 stat.

READ Terrence Romeo plays through the pain to aid SMB cause in Game 4

SMB coach Jorge Gallent gave credit to the 36-year-old native of Licab, Nueva Ecija, who he said had been sick prior to the start of the best-of-seven title series.

"After the Rain or Shine series, he got kind of sick," said the San Miguel coach of Manuel.

While Gallent didn’t specify what exactly ailed Manuel, he did mention the PSBA alum didn’t practice with the team for the most part of  14-day break while the Beermen waited to know which team it would face in the finals.

"That was a 14-day break, so I think he didn’t practice for 10 to 12 days kasi he was really feeling ill. And he just stayed in his house," said Gallent.

Manuel did look a bit sluggish in his first finals outing, but did enough to earn kind words from his coach.

"I talked to Terrence (Romeo) and Vic and told them If there’s a chance I can bring you inside, can you play at least 110 percent?" Gallent recalled of his talk with Manuel and Romeo, another injured player who also played in the finals for the first time.

PHOTO: Jerome Ascano

"And they did it. And I’m very happy that they followed the instructions."

Gallent noted, however, that Manuel still has to regain top form after a prolonged absence from the court.

"He’s just getting his breath back now, and its coming back. In practice he’s doing extra work, and so he wants his timing back," said the San Miguel coach. "I’m sure he’s gonna come back. And I just hope soon."

2024-06-12T16:07:20Z dg43tfdfdgfd