Rookie’s surreal experience

There’s only one rookie in Barangay Ginebra’s lineup for the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals and Jett Manuel is living the experience of a lifetime. The other freshman in the Ginebra pool Julian Sargent is recovering from a shoulder injury and won’t be on the active roster until the next conference.

“Playing in my first Finals in the highest level of basketball is surreal,” said Manuel, one of six Ginebra players, including Sargent, in the 26 and under age group. “No matter what the score is, just to be given the opportunity to play on that stage is different. A good type of different. I’m hoping next time, I’m playing a bigger role to help my team win.”

It’s been a slow process of maturity for Manuel, a licensed civil engineer. He withdrew his name from the PBA draft two years ago to play out his UAAP eligibility with UP then took a leave from the game to prepare for the board exams. Last October, Manuel reapplied for the draft and was picked on the first round by Ginebra. In the Philippine Cup this season, Manuel played in only six of Ginebra’s 18 games, averaging 1.7 points and 6.5 minutes. This conference, he has seen action in 12 contests, including the first four encounters in the Finals. Manuel has scored a total of four points the entire conference so far.

What has impressed Manuel about playing for Ginebra is the fan support. “I’ll never get used to the Ginebra crowd,” he said. “Their support has been constant throughout the conference. Their chants and cheers are a huge part of how we play. I now know the real meaning of the ‘sixth man’ through the crowd. I hope they can support us even more, if that’s even possible.”

Manuel said the key to the Finals is outworking the other team. “In this series, it’s always been shown that whoever can outwork the other team gets the win,” he said. “It has to be on both sides of the floor, defensively and offensively. San Miguel Beer is a great offensive team and we just have to show how great we are as a defensive team first.”

Although more known for its defense, Ginebra is underrated as an offensive team. “On offense, we move the ball and get everyone involved,” he said.  “It’s really paid off when we lead the game in assists. Coach Tim (Cone) always tells us there’s no magic formula to beat this team. We just have to outwork them as a unit. Move the ball, play settled defense and control the rebounds.” In Ginebra’s three wins in the Finals, the Barangay averaged 32.3 dimes.

In Game 6 tonight, Manuel said Ginebra must be ready for San Miguel’s aggressiveness. “Their backs are against the wall and with a great team like theirs, they know they can come back and beat us,” he said. “It’s not a matter of confidence for them. So on our part, we just have to be prepared for their aggressiveness and physicality on both ends. We have to be able to execute, no matter what.”

Cone’s record in a best-of-7 Finals is 17-7 while San Miguel coach Leo Austria’s slate is a perfect 6-0. Cone’s experience is a distinct advantage as he’s in his 33rd Finals compared to Austria’s seventh. Overall, Cone has bagged 20 titles to Austria’s six and he’s the only two-time Grand Slam winning coach in PBA history with Alaska in 1996 and San Mig Coffee in 2013-14. If Ginebra wins tonight, it will mark the first loss for Austria in the Finals.

Historically, the team that has won Game 5 from 2-2 in the Finals went on to clinch at a rate of 68.4 percent. PBA chief statistician Fidel Mangonon pointed out that in the previous nine situations, every team that took Game 5 from 2-2 eventually clinched with two of the last three in Game 6. That’s how pivotal a Game 5 is in a best-of-seven Finals. 

In San Miguel’s two Finals wins, the Beermen averaged 133 points and shot 55 percent from the floor. But in the three losses, their numbers dropped to 94 points and 38.3 percent. In the series, the team that hit a higher field goal percentage, knocked down more triples and had more assists has won every game. For San Miguel to survive Game 6 and force a Game 7 on Friday, the Beermen must unleash their full arsenal and make it a high-scoring shootout. Austria must lengthen his rotation, get his backcourt more involved in the offense and show less predictability on both ends. There’s a reason why Ginebra, ranking last in fastbreak points for the conference, has outscored San Miguel in transition in four of the five Finals games. Ginebra’s getting more chances to score on the break because of its defense and San Miguel’s limited rotation wilting under the burden of heavy minutes.