Magnolia coach Chito Victolero hailed the resolve of his team to overcome adversity to advance to the PBA Philippine Cup championship series against defending champ San Miguel for their second straight finals appearance.
In doing so, the Hotshots needed to display their resilience after a 0-3 start in the eliminations and with their backs against the wall in the playoffs.
Magnolia lost Game 1 of its best-of-three quarterfinals series against Ginebra but found a away to win the next two games to earn the right to meet Rain or Shine in semi-finals.
The Hotshots' chances to reach the Finals appeared bleak after the Elasto Painters took Games 1 and 2.
But they didn't lose heart. And as they did time and time again, the Hotshots reached down deep into their bag of tricks to turn their fortunes around.
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True enough, Magnolia won the next three games to take the lead. But ROS was just as motivated. The Elasto Painters dominated Game 6 to tie the series and forced a do-or-die match.
The Hotshots fall behind by 17 points in the third quarter in the deciding Seventh Game and from the looks of it Rain or Shine is headed to the Finals for the first time in a long while.
But don't tell that to the Hotshots. After struggling offensively in the first three quarters, the Hotshots regained their touch when they needed its most and went on to dominate the Elasto Painters in overtime to complete one of the most unforgettable comebacks in the playoffs.
"Wala nga yun sa amin e dahil yung pinagdaanan namin (this conference) e sobrang hirap," offered Victolero, referring to the 39-22 deficit early in the third.
"Sabi ko nga sa kanila na to just enjoy this game because nobody expected us to be here after starting 0-3 and after losing Game 1 to Ginebra and going down 0-2 against Rain or Shine kaya grabe yung grit and resiliency of this team," he added.
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Magnolia is out to avenge last season's loss to San Miguel in the 2018 Philippine Cup Finals that ended after five matches. (JT)
