Tim Cone braces for TNT fightback as Ginebra shoots for 3-1 lead
Published Apr 16, 2023 01:39 am
With the series slowly turning into a showdown of which team shoots the ball well, Barangay Ginebra looks to sustain the perfect touch against TNT when it goes for a commanding 3-1 series lead in Game 4 of the best-of-seven Finals at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Sunday, April 16.
*After a successful bounce back game, Justin Brownlee hopes to lift Ginebra to a 3-1 series lead (PBA Images)*
The Kings, though, are bracing for a huge fightback from the Tropang Giga in the 4:30 p.m. encounter with Ginebra coach Tim Cone refusing to get complacent even after the historic 117-103 Game 3 win. “They are in the Finals for a reason. So it’s really hard to get a back-to-back against a really good team and Jojo has been doing all the right things, saying all the right things,” said Cone in the aftermath of the victory where the Kings recorded a franchise-best 18 triples to take a 2-1 series lead. Cone is certain that TNT has the capability to bounce back come Game 4 especially with how they managed to tie the series in Game 2 – something Ginebra needs to anticipate if it wishes to go one win away from reclaiming its crown. “They made some really good adjustments in Game 2 that caught us off guard and we had to readjust. We’re gonna come in Game 4 and do the same thing. Obviously you can’t rest in a series like this,” explained Cone. With two wins in the series now under the Kings’ belt, Cone seemed to have finally found the recipe for success against TNT. “What we have to do to try to win Game 4, I honestly don’t know. At this point, I have to look back and we have a certain recipe for success and that’s executing and moving the ball and being unselfish first, hopefully that would be enough for Game 4,” he added. That was indeed the case in Game 3 when Stanley Pringle and Jamie Malonzo took the mantle from Justin Brownlee and led the Kings’ shooting display. Pringle, who started for Ginebra for the first time this conference, showed his vintage form and set the tone for the Kings with an impeccable 7-of-7 shooting from the field including a 6-of-6 tries from deep for 21 points. Malonzo also put on the finishing touches in the final frame, connecting for two of his six makes from the distance in the deciding 25-9 run. On the other hand, Lastimosa is convinced that his wards should all be on the same page especially on the defensive end if they want to avoid falling into a 1-3 hole and reduce the series to a virtual best-of-three affair should they take the equalizing Game 4 win. “We need to do a better job defending their three-point shooters. That's going to be our game plan. We need to close out on their shooters especially if they started so kalangan mas malapit kami,” said Lastimosa.
*After a successful bounce back game, Justin Brownlee hopes to lift Ginebra to a 3-1 series lead (PBA Images)*
The Kings, though, are bracing for a huge fightback from the Tropang Giga in the 4:30 p.m. encounter with Ginebra coach Tim Cone refusing to get complacent even after the historic 117-103 Game 3 win. “They are in the Finals for a reason. So it’s really hard to get a back-to-back against a really good team and Jojo has been doing all the right things, saying all the right things,” said Cone in the aftermath of the victory where the Kings recorded a franchise-best 18 triples to take a 2-1 series lead. Cone is certain that TNT has the capability to bounce back come Game 4 especially with how they managed to tie the series in Game 2 – something Ginebra needs to anticipate if it wishes to go one win away from reclaiming its crown. “They made some really good adjustments in Game 2 that caught us off guard and we had to readjust. We’re gonna come in Game 4 and do the same thing. Obviously you can’t rest in a series like this,” explained Cone. With two wins in the series now under the Kings’ belt, Cone seemed to have finally found the recipe for success against TNT. “What we have to do to try to win Game 4, I honestly don’t know. At this point, I have to look back and we have a certain recipe for success and that’s executing and moving the ball and being unselfish first, hopefully that would be enough for Game 4,” he added. That was indeed the case in Game 3 when Stanley Pringle and Jamie Malonzo took the mantle from Justin Brownlee and led the Kings’ shooting display. Pringle, who started for Ginebra for the first time this conference, showed his vintage form and set the tone for the Kings with an impeccable 7-of-7 shooting from the field including a 6-of-6 tries from deep for 21 points. Malonzo also put on the finishing touches in the final frame, connecting for two of his six makes from the distance in the deciding 25-9 run. On the other hand, Lastimosa is convinced that his wards should all be on the same page especially on the defensive end if they want to avoid falling into a 1-3 hole and reduce the series to a virtual best-of-three affair should they take the equalizing Game 4 win. “We need to do a better job defending their three-point shooters. That's going to be our game plan. We need to close out on their shooters especially if they started so kalangan mas malapit kami,” said Lastimosa.