Tenorio on late game benching against Phoenix: “Diskarte ni Coach ‘yun e"

LA Tenorio had to watch Ginebra's furious comeback at the sidelines. PBA Media Bureau

By Patrick Sutare

QUEZON CITY--Barangay Ginebra star point guard LA Tenorio refused to dwell so much and put a weight on coach Tim Cone's decision to bench him late in his team’s loss to Phoenix on Friday night.

[Related Story: Phoenix breaks dry spell, overcomes late scare to heap misery on injury-bugged Barangay Ginebra]

“Diskarte niya (Cone) ‘yun e. Di ko naman pwedeng sirain yun. Diskarte n’ya yun e. Kung di n’ya ko gamitin, e di n’ya ko gagamitin. Kung next game di n’ya rin ako gagamitin, diskarte n’ya yun e, ‘di ba? So wala naman akong ano do’n, wala namang problema do’n,” the 12-year veteran said.

The Barangay nearly pulled off yet another patented comeback in the said game. The Kings outscored the Fuel Masters 29-12 in the fourth period which then proved insufficient to erase the huge deficit the latter established for the first three quarters.

Surpsingly, however, Tenorio was nowhere to be seen on the court when the sudden avalanche was launched by the Kings.

Instead, the 33-year old tenacious guard was kept on the sidelines by Cone and had no other choice but to watch his teammates, fueled by his backcourt partner Scottie Thompson, mount an uprising.

Whether it was Cone’s strategy to keep him fresh for Sunday’s game against San Miguel, or just a mere adjustment on the fly during the game, Tenorio insisted that he had no idea.

Time and again, he just reiterated of his coach’s decision, “Diskarte n’ya yun, e.”

For him, the sudden benching is not something he would lose sleep about. The “Tinyente” instead wants his team to focus on the bigger and more apparent facets of their game that need immediate improvement.

Going more specific, he said that the team being saddled by injuries is not an excuse. He made clear that it is more about their willingness to win which should manifest on the defensive end.

"Natalo na din kami (nang) ando’n si Greg e. So I don’t think Greg(‘s absence) is the reason kung bakit natatalo kami,” he justified, citing the Kings’ loss to Blackwater as a clear evidence. “It’s not an excuse. It’s really finding ways how to win. Everyone has to step up every game. We gave up a lot of easy points doon sa mga (games) na natatalo kami. I think our defense is really the problem.”

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