Disappointment were written on the faces of veteran stars Arvin Tolentino and Jio Jalalon as Northport ended its campaign on a whimper.
The Batang Pier were already eliminated as early as the previous game and they ended the double-round group phase with a 79-99 loss at the hands of TNT Tropang Giga in the PBA Governors’ Cup on Sunday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Both players similarly summed up the team’s disappointing finish.
“I’m disappointed. Disappointed has to be the word,” said Tolentino. “Siyempre, coming to this season, you expect to make the playoffs, which hindi namin nagawa. There were a few unfortunate situations, I think. We played a few games without an import. But we really need to play better as a team.”
The Batang Pier started the season parading Taylor Johns, who was replaced by Venky Jois even after the first reinforcement submitted impressive numbers of 36 points, 16 rebounds and nine assists in a 95-101 loss to TNT last August 20.
But Jois, who helped the Batang Pier in reaching the playoffs in the Commissioner’s Cup last season, also missed several games due to injuries, including the torn Achilles he suffered that practically ruled him out of the tournament. NorthPort played practically without an import in its last three games.
Jalalon, acquired by NorthPort in a trade along with big man Abu Tratter for sophomore Zav Lucero, also shared similar sentiments with Tolentino.
“Maraming nangyari sa team, isa na rito yung parati kaming walang import,” added Jalalon. “But we offer no excuses. Darating rin yung time na makakapasok kami sa playoffs. For sure, may potential itong team na ito.”
