Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — Alaska point guard JVee Casio knew how important it is to take the headstart in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Governors’ Cup semifinals against defending champions Star Hotshots.
So he went full-throttle on Wednesday (July 1).
Casio shot two three-pointers on his way to 18 points for the Aces, who took a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five duel with a 97-91 win over Hotshots at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.
Read: PBA Semifinals: Alaska takes headstart with come-from-behind win over Hotshots
“Importante talaga yung Game 1,” Casio said without elaboriting.
But doing that was not a walk in the park, especially against an experienced team like Star. Alaska, in fact, had to overcome an 18-point deficit in the first half.
“It’s tough,” he said. “Pero I think we just kept on playing, stayed together, and played Alaska basketball.”
He added, “We’re playing to win. We want to go to the Finals and I think it’s the same with them.”
But Casio said the road to the finals will be tougher. The Game 1 win is not an indication of things to come, but it’s good to start on the right foot.
