As one of the leaders of the Bossing, Rosario knows his role goes beyond scoring.
Finally, fans saw the real Troy Rosario—solid, aggressive, and productive.
On Wednesday, Rosario churned out probably his best game yet in a Blackwater Bossing uniform in a 100-94 win over Terrafirma Dyip in the PBA On Tour.
The former UAAP champion with the NU Bulldogs, who suffered a plantar fasciitis injury in November last year, looked like a man finally getting his groove back after finishing with 20 points on 8-for-13 shooting from the field in over 23 minutes of action.
After the game, Rosario, who also had 5 rebounds, bared the Bossing coaches issued a challenge to the team after their sorry 117-83 loss to the Magnolia Hotshots last Sunday.
With Rosario at the forefront, the Bossing responded big time.
“We were challenged kasi sa game na ‘to. Sabi ng mga coaches, titignan nila paano kami mag-respond after a big loss sa Magnolia,” he said.
“I think kailangan ko i-start ‘yun, kami ng mga veterans like (Baser) Amer at Jvee (Casio). Good thing sumunod mga teammates namin. Talagang nagpakita sa offense at defense.”
He was on point.
Five Bossing finished in double figures, with Rashawn McCarthy and RK Ilagan scoring 13 and 12 points, respectively. Blackwater also had 51 bench points.
Traded from TNT Tropang Giga in a three-team deal in September last year, Rosario knows his role with Blackwater goes beyond scoring. And he’s hell bent on fulfilling that day in and day out.
“I think ‘yung natutunan ko, ‘yung winning mentality sa previous teams ko, gusto kong ipakita sa kanila [Bossing teammates] pano mag work hard para ‘yung team mag-succeed,” he said when asked about what he thinks is his most important role with the team.
“Kasi kapag ako naging leader, 'pag ako isa sa mga naging leaders, sa tingin ko malaki maitutulong ko para maiba ‘yung stigma na 'pag Blackwater kalaban, plus one na ‘yung kalaban.”
It won't be an easy task. Rosario, though, is all for it.
(MDB)