News! Despite back-to-back losses, James Yap, Marc Pingris believe Purefoods ready for playoffs The Purefoods Star Hotshots may have lost back-to-back games in the crucial stretch of the PBA Philippine Cup but star players James Yap and Marc Pingris are convinced the team is showing the signs of peaking at the right time. “Tingin ko, oo,” Yap told a small group of sportswriters after the team’s loss to Talk ‘N Text on Wednesday. “Ngayon, nakikita ko ready na kami for the playoffs.” More than the results, Yap believes it’s the attitude that his team is displaying that will carry them forward. “Kasi nakikita ko yung tulungan. Andun na yung willing mag-sacrifice lahat. May chance pa naman, kailangan hindi makasira itong talo na ito sa amin,” he added. Pingris believes that the quality of play is right there, even if it didn’t necessarily reflect in the win-loss record. “Sa tingin ko bumabalik na yung laro namin. Andun na rin kasi yung defense namin,” said Pingris, who starred in the game with 21 points and 11 rebounds, one of his best performances of the young season. The defensive ace also made some big shots late in regulation but the game was sent into overtime by Talk ‘N Text’s Larry Fonacier. Pingris scored six of the team’s last eight points in the fourth quarter. “Para sa kanila lang talaga yung laro. Kung hindi lang na-shoot ni Fonacier yung huli, amin sana yun,” he added. Though Yap and Pingris are feeling positive about the team’s play, the loss may prove costly for the Hotshots. Purefoods is chasing one of the few twice-to-beat berths in the playoffs, and is currently mired in a three-way deadlock with Meralco and GlobalPort for the sixth to eighth places. The top two teams automatically qualify for the semis while seeds three through six get twice-to-beat advantages in their respective quarterfinal match-ups. The good thing for Purefoods, though, is that it’s never been a team to shy away from doing it the hard way. “Nanghihinayangako kasi maskait yung pagkatalo eh. Pero may purpose naman si Lord sa nangyayari sa team naming. Hindi naman pwedeng parati na lang kaming nasa top 1 or laging semis agad. Kailangan naming pagtrabahuhan rin talaga,” Pingris said. (Rey Joble) #sixteen
Posted on: Thu, 04 Dec 2014 01:22:56 +0000
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