There was nothing the Meralco Bolts could do about eight-time Most Valuable Player and the recent addition to the PBA's Greatest list, June Mar Fajardo.
Meralco may be the defending champion in the PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup, but for head coach Luigi Trillo, that does not make his team any better.
It was none more apparent than in the Bolts’ 98-110 loss to San Miguel in a match that seemed to turn back time as they donned retro jerseys at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum Wednesday night, April 9.
“Make no mistake about it. We may be the champions here at the All-Filipino, but there are a lot of deep teams,” said Trillo on the day the league turned 50.
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Trillo was referring to the Beermen, while also mentioning Ginebra, Converge and Rain or Shine.
Meralco was solid in the first three quarters, but things went downhill when San Miguel went berserk in a 33-point fourth quarter performance.
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There was nothing the Bolts could do to counter that, especially with eight-time Most Valuable Player June Mar Fajardo putting up 28 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and a block.
“The intensity of San Miguel was there from the start. We’re very frustrated. We were not coming down on defense. June Mar (Fajardo) was manhandling our guys,” said Trillo.
He added: “[I] give credit to San Miguel. That’s why they’re San Miguel. Pagdating ng fourth, they abused us inside. When we tried to double, they made their threes.”
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Despite falling to a 2-1 record, Trillo and the Bolts remained optimistic.
“We’re always learning. I don’t think we’re at our best today. I think we’re OK for a quarter and a half,” Trillo said.