Defense ace Munzon lets his offense do the talking this time
Joshua Munzon may have found his niche as one of the PBA’s top defenders, but that doesn’t mean he has abandoned his old role as a gunslinger.
“I just want to be aggressive [on offense],” said Munzon, whose four-pointer with less than a minute left gave NorthPort a crucial cushion on the way to a 107-103 victory in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
The result allowed the Batang Pier to go 3-0 (win-loss) for the first time since the 2019 Commissioner’s Cup while matching the win output they had in the previous conference when they missed the playoffs after dropping the last four games of the group stage.
The win inspired optimism that NorthPort may achieve its goal of getting to the quarterfinals after unsuccessful tries in the previous two conferences.
“Starting 3-0 is big for us and hopefully we can regroup, come back and get [our next] game on Sunday,” said Munzon, whose Batang Pier will have another massive test on Sunday against Governors’ Cup champion TNT at Ynares Center in Antipolo City.
Munzon finished with 25 points after he somehow revived his pre-PBA days when he was known as someone who could score in bunches in the defunct Asean Basketball League and the 3×3 scene.
But Munzon’s defense has become noticeable since the No. 1 pick of Terrafirma in 2021 got acclimatized at NorthPort, eventually landing a spot in the All-Defensive Team in Season 48 after leading the league in steals.
“I still had five steals tonight so defense is still a big part of my game,” Munzon said. “But it’s about being confident in taking the shots that they gave me. I felt like [Magnolia] wasn’t guarding me a lot of times so I just took shots with confidence.”
Two other reasons why NorthPort is off to a good start are import Kadeem Jack and main star Arvin Tolentino, both posting stellar numbers anew.
Jack had 30 points and 11 rebounds, allowing the Batang Pier to benefit from the last-minute switch where they dropped their first choice of import, 6-foot-11 Kavell Bigby-Williams. Tolentino, meanwhile, added 27 as he picked up from his triple-double against lowly Terrafirma.
NorthPort handed Magnolia another alarming loss, its second straight after starting the conference with a win, spoiling another stellar showing from rookie Jerom Lastimosa, who finished with 27 points, eight rebounds and eight assists.
Unlike Sunday’s collapse against Converge, Magnolia saw itself trail by 13 in the fourth and nearly pulled a role reversal when the NorthPort lead shrunk to 96-95 going into the final minute.
