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Manila Bulletin devider Sports devider Basketball devider Stephen Holt takes on challenge of stopping Oftana

Stephen Holt takes on challenge of stopping Oftana

Published Mar 11, 2025 07:21 am

At A Glance

  • Barangay Ginebra guard Stephen Holt continued to build up his resume as one of the league's elite defenders after putting the clamps on NorthPort star and Best Player of the Conference frontrunner Arvin Tolentino during the semifinals of the PBA Season 49 Commissioner's Cup.

Barangay Ginebra guard Stephen Holt continued to build up his resume as one of the league's elite defenders after putting the clamps on NorthPort star and Best Player of the Conference frontrunner Arvin Tolentino during the semifinals of the PBA Season 49 Commissioner's Cup.

But he could find himself in another daunting task come the best-of-seven Finals series against TNT, this time getting the role as the primary stopper against Tropang Giga star and another BPC candidate Calvin Oftana.

The Tropang Giga forward has been one of the vital cogs to his team's return to the Finals and he's expected to take on the cudgels, especially that TNT will be missing the services of veteran guard Jayson Castro.

So it's only imperative for the Kings to ensure that they put a body to the sweet-shooting forward who averaged 16.0 points and 5.9 rebounds in the semifinals series against Rain or Shine.

“Obviously we take pride in our defense and I was able to show my skills on that end,” said Holt on the prospect of defending Oftana.

Holt's defensive capabilities was put into the spotlight during the semifinals when he limited Tolentino to just 12.8 points including a pair of single-digit scoring two of the five games they played.

Tolentino's numbers in the semifinals was a far cry from his elimination performance where he averaged 23 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.9 assists on his way to finishing second behind June Mar Fajardo in the statistical race at the end of the quarterfinals.

Holt, however, added that it will not be only him who will get the task of defending Oftana but also the rest of the Kings.

“It's going to be a great series. Obviously we have very talented players,” said Holt.

“We're still working on our game plan and matchups and whatnot. But again, I'm looking forward to competing against all our guys over in TNT,” he added.

It would be the second straight finals that Holt and the Kings are facing the Tropang Giga and the sophomore guard is hoping to be able to flip the story this time around.

“Hopefully we can get the job done this time,” he added.

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