NorthPort waited long and hard before winning against Ginebra in the PBA again, with the Batang Pier finaly scoring a breakthrough in the Commissioner's Cup.
It all started with the belief that they can beat Ginebra.
After five years and 14 games, the NorthPort Batang Pier finally scored one against the Gin Kings — a 119-116 decision in the PBA Season 49 Commissioner’s Cup on Wednesday, Jan., 8.
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Batang Pier coach Bonnie Tan did not seem surprised with the rousing win that saw his wards go toe-to-toe against the battle-tested Gin Kings led by Justin Brownlee.
“Sa practice we talked about na beatable pa rin yung Ginebra even though we haven’t beaten them for the past five years,” said Tan, whose team now improved to superior 7-1 win-loss record.
Though NorthPort started the conference with an impressive 5-0 tally, not a few cast their doubts on whether or not the Batang Pier can beat a perennial contender like Ginebra.
That’s why Tan challenged his players to prove naysayers wrong.
“Beatable 'yung Ginebra. We challenged 'yung mga players namin na tonight’s game is a statement game for us,” he said.
Among those who embraced the challenged and delivered was Joshua Munzon, who churned out 27 points, two rebounds, six assists, two steals, and a block.
Like Tan, Munzon knew this could happen after working hard during the break in preparation for this marquee matchup.
It paid off.
“What we wanted to do going into the break, we knew were gonna play tough team in Ginebra tonight, one of the better teams in the league. We’ve been preparing pretty much the whole break. I think all that hard work paid off tonight,” Munzon said.
The job is not finished, though. NorthPort still has to face tough teams like Meralco, Rain or Shine, and San Miguel this conference.
But any doubt about the Batang Pier not stringing more victories after this Ginebra decision should be quashed once and for all.