MANILA, Philippines -- Barangay Ginebra head coach Tim Cone admitted that he was “shocked” that the Gin Kings were able to blow the Magnolia Hotshots out on Saturday, as they punched the first ticket to the PBA Philippine Cup semifinals.
Ginebra, led by Christian Standhardinger, advanced to the next round of the playoffs with a 99-77 masterclass.
After the win, Cone bared that he is “totally gulat.”
“I’m shocked that this happened, this quick and that we were able to beat them like we did,” the multi-titled coach told reporters.
The coach bared that they would have not liked playing the “dangerous” Hotshots in a sudden-death game.
“All day today, I was just dreading having to come and play this game and thinking about we got a knockout game on Wednesday, and you know, so you go through these emotions leading up to the game and once the game starts, you just lock into the game,” he said.
“It was a tough day today, in terms of the nerves coming in and playing especially against a team like Magnolia , they pose a lot of danger. To me they’re the most dangerous team out there outside of San Miguel, and they’ve got a proven track record, their coaches [are] playoff tested and you know, they were just in the finals in the last conference,” he added.
Standhardinger exploded for 36 points and 11 rebounds. All five Ginebra starters finished in double digits.
The Gin Kings’ defense also forced the Hotshots to shoot just 38% from the field. While forcing them to commit 21 turnovers.
“We had a lot to worry about today coming to this game and we’re totally shocked, I’m totally shocked that we played as well as we did and we were able to finish them tonight,” he said.
“Honestly, I’m really happy about it, I have to admit. I didn’t want to play another knockout game with them.”
Ginebra is now waiting for the winner of the quarterfinal series between the Meralco Bolts and the NLEX Road Warriors.
The two will face off on Sunday, 6:15 p.m. at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum in Manila.