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Brian Goorjian puts trust in Bay Area's motion game in final play

Brian Goorjian decided not to use a timeout in the final seconds of Bay Area-NorthPort game, and his gamble paid off. PBA Images
By Ivan Saldajeno

MANILA—Under PBA rules, a coach can call a timeout right after a defensive stop in the dying moments of a game with it on the line.

However, Coach Brian Goorjian took a gamble and let Kobey Lam run the ball with 10 seconds left in the Bay Area-NorthPort game at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay on Saturday night.

As puzzled as some fans are with this high-risk move as the Dragons were on the verge of dropping a game in the Philippines for the first time after going 10-0 so far tune-up games included, Goorjian believes it was the right call.

"My philosophy is when you've got motion when you're in—and for this new team, we don't have a lot for a timeout—if there's six seconds left, we got to get the ball in," he explained.

Good thing for the Hong Kong-based side, they have a closer in Myles Powell.

"They're gonna go to him. I thought it was better in flow and momentum," Goorjian further said.

Powell delivered as he received Lam's hand-off, dribbled past Arwind Santos and Arvin Tolentino to the left wing, and scored a tough fadeaway three-pointer against Prince Ibeh right at the final buzzer to steal the win for Bay Area.

[Related Story: Myles Powell deals NorthPort endgame heartbreak as Bay Area goes 2-0 in PBA Comm's Cup]

If Goorjian is to ask, he will not hesitate on running the same play again if a similar incident arises in the future.

"That's what I've done in my career. If it's under 15 seconds left and you've got momentum going, let them play, and I thought we would be in a more difficult situation if we call the timeout and they got to set their defense on where we are today," he further said.

Follow him on Twitter: @IvanSaldajeno

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