It’s a double celebration for Meralco lifer Cliff Hodge, winning a PBA title on Father's Day while expecting to be a dad, with his wife bearing their first child.
Cliff Hodge pulled out his cigar and gave it a deep puff inside Meralco’s dugout Sunday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
His shirt drenched in alcohol, Hodge then went out of the room barefoot.
He couldn’t care less.
After all, Hodge earned his first PBA championship as Meralco hacked out an 80-78 Game 6 win over San Miguel to rule the Season 48 Philippine Cup.
“I’ve been waiting to smoke this for so long. Man, finally a champion. Finally a champion. Feels so good,” he said.
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No one could have scripted this breakthrough Meralco title better.
After countless dives for loose balls, muscle pains, and heartbreaks, Hodge is finally a PBA champion for the first time, doing so with the same team that picked him no. 4 overall in the 2012 Draft.
The energetic forward said when the going got tough, the Bolts just had to stick together and believe in every member of the team -- from the utility, to the players, and to the coaching staff.
“(We’ve been) through so many are ups and downs. We’ve lost four Finals and of course after a loss you always try to figure out how do we get this done as a team,” said Hodge, who suffered four gut-wrenching losses to Ginebra in the Governors’ Cup Finals in the distant past.
“We just kept believing. Credit to my teammates and coaching staff for getting us prepared and we came out here and finally get it done.”
[ALSO READ: PBA: Chris Newsome earns Finals MVP honors after leading Meralco to breakthrough title]
Winning the title on Father's Day made it all the more sweet for Hodge, as he bared to reporters that he and his wife are expecting a child.
“At the end of the day I just wanted to leave it out there on the court, just trust in my teammates, trust in God. I’m praying a lot. God’s given me everything that I’ve ever wanted,” he said.
“I’m so blessed. My wife’s pregnant this Father’s Day. It can’t get any better than this. Just so happy.”
[ALSO READ: ‘Time ng Meralco mag-champion’: Seven-time MVP June Mar Fajardo gracious in defeat as Bolts seize breakthrough PBA crown]
Before the classic series unfurled, Hodge said he was afraid of ending his roller-coaster PBA career without a chip. He won't have to worry about that anymore.
And now that he’s gotten a taste of one, it appears the 36-year-old Meralco forward is craving for more.
“That’s the mindset. Just keep it going. Play as hard as you can. And we’ll see next conference,” he said.
[ALSO READ: PBA: Allein Maliksi savors ‘sweetest’ championship with Meralco]