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Paul Lee admits 'saddest birthday' after Magnolia finals loss

Sports | Basketball

Paul Lee admits 'saddest birthday' after Magnolia finals loss

By Mark Rey Montejo

At A Glance

Paul Lee was greeted with an unwanted present on his very special day after the Magnolia Hotshots crumbled in the endgame and dropped a 104-102 loss to the title-winning San Miguel Beermen on Wednesday night, Feb. 14.

Paul Lee was greeted with an unwanted present on his very special day after the Magnolia Hotshots crumbled in the endgame and dropped a 104-102 loss to the title-winning San Miguel Beermen on Wednesday night, Feb. 14.

PBA Images2.jpg — Magnolia Hotshots' Paul Lee (PBA Images)

Lee, who celebrated his 35th birthday, admitted that it was the saddest birthday he ever had. He, however, remained grateful for the opportunity of finishing the series despite numerous doubts thrown at him.

“Probably the saddest birthday,” an emotional Lee said in the aftermath of a Game 6 defeat at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

“But marami pa namang bagay na pwedeng ipagpasalamat, unang-una natapos ‘yong game na walang nasaktan, natapos ko ‘yong series na laging sinasabi sakin na hindi ko natapos dahil nai-injury ako,” he added.

“So ‘yon ‘yong mga bagay na dapat kong ipagpasalamat,”

The Tondo native proved that he still has gas on his tank as he topscored with 25 points to lead the Hotshots.

“Credit to San Miguel, they really wanted [to win] tonight. So move on, tomorrow is another day,” Lee addressed.

Magnolia actually held a 95-86 cushion halfway through the fourth quarter. However, the lead was slowly trimmed down when Jericho Cruz, Chris Ross and CJ Perez drilled in clutch triples in the waning minutes to turn the game around for San Miguel.

Related Tags

San Miguel Beermen Magnolia Hotshots PBA Commissionerâ€™s Cup Paul Lee

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