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Manila Bulletin devider Sports devider Basketball devider Cone slams officiating narrative in PBA Finals

Cone slams officiating narrative in PBA Finals

Published Jun 15, 2026 02:56 pm

At A Glance

  • Barangay Ginebra head coach Tim Cone expressed frustration over what he described as an unfair narrative surrounding the PBA Commissioner's Cup Finals, saying the Kings are often accused of benefiting from officiating whenever they win.

Barangay Ginebra head coach Tim Cone expressed frustration over what he described as an unfair narrative surrounding the PBA Commissioner's Cup Finals, saying the Kings are often accused of benefiting from officiating whenever they win.

"I'm just getting really tired of the idea that when we win, it was always because we got favored by the referees and when they win it's always about great coaching and great play. It's a narrative that's getting really old," said the multi-titled coach after Ginebra absorbed a 98-90 loss to TNT in Game 6.

Cone's remarks appeared to be a response to TNT head coach Chot Reyes' repeated complaints about the officiating following the Tropang 5G's losses in the series.

Reyes first took a sarcastic swipe at the ‘excellent’ officiating after Game 3, claiming his team did not get the calls it deserved, before again pointing to the free-throw disparity following TNT's Game 5 defeat.

"It is starting to bother me a bit. It's unfair. I coached against Ginebra for 27 years and it just got to a point that it's crazy — it's referees for us, great coaching, great play for them," Cone said.

Despite his frustrations, Cone acknowledged that TNT simply outplayed Ginebra down the stretch of Game 6, highlighted by Chris McCullough's PBA career-high 54-point explosion. Ginebra, meanwhile, received little offensive support for Justin Brownlee, who finished with 52 points.

"But I'll be the first one to say that McCullough was awesome tonight. He hit shots that we couldn't control all game long. We challenged him from the outside and he made big shots. The last two shots — the three and the four — broke our backs," Cone said.

He also pointed to the struggles of his backcourt.

"Scottie and RJ were 2-of-18 from the field today. You're not gonna see that very often," he added.

Still, Cone remains confident Ginebra can bounce back in the winner-take-all Game 7. His only hope is that, should the Kings prevail, the result will not once again be attributed to the officiating.

"I just hope that when we do win they're not gonna turn around and say it's the referees again," Cone said.

Related Tags

Tim Cone Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings Chot Reyes PBA Finals
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