Learning experience, says Lam as Dyip run over hapless Pandas
ANTIPOLO—Coming off a shameful 60-point defeat, the Macau Giant Pandas made every effort to be competitive on Saturday.
They managed to stay in the game until halftime.
The hapless guest team absorbed a 146-127 defeat to Terrafirma, becoming the first team to bow out of contention in the PBA Governors’ Cup.
The Giant Pandas have now lost eight out of their 10 games in the conference, and after getting whacked by 60 points by NLEX, there wasn’t really much doubt that Macau would not make it past the group stage.
“It’s a learning experience to be honest with you,” Kobey Lam told the Inquirer after firing 37 points in the loss.
Lam is no stranger to the PBA, having been part of the talent-laden Bay Area Dragons team that pushed Barangay Ginebra to seven games in the Finals before falling short of winning the 2022 to 2023 Commissioner’s Cup.
Last season saw Lam joining Eastern, one of Hong Kong’s top teams, when it competed in the Commissioner’s Cup. That stint resulted in a playoff appearance before eventual champion TNT showed Eastern the door in the quarterfinals.
A third appearance in the country has not been kind for Lam, as he had to carry a much larger role than before, especially after main players Damian Chong Qui left for Macau Hon Chon and the duo of Ramon Cao and Jenning Leung went to Eastern during the PBA break.
Macau hit rock bottom on Wednesday after the 138-78 loss to NLEX broke a seven-month record previously held by Rain or Shine, which authored a 56-point drubbing of Blackwater in the Commissioner’s Cup last March.
Lam and the Giant Pandas came to this city hoping for redemption against the Dyip, who lost by 22 points to the Tropang 5G on the same night as that infamous result against NLEX.
“We just put the NLEX game away, forget about it. Just compete against Terrafirma and play hard,” said Lam.
Macau kept things close in the first half, with Lam and import Oscar Lopez Jr. among those leading the charge. The closest was at three, 49-46, with eight minutes to go in the second before Terrafirma took control.
Import Justin Strings, Juami Tiongson, Geo Chiu, JM Bravo and Maverick Ahanmisi conspired in pulling away and producing a victory that kept Terrafirma’s slim playoff hopes alive.
Terrafirma improved to 4-6 for fifth in Group A, trailing TNT (5-4, but with a game against San Miguel Beer at press time) and Converge (5-4). The top four teams in the group advance to the crossover quarters.
Macau’s stint in the country has not been well-received, with the league not likely to extend an invitation to the team. Reports have it that the PBA is looking elsewhere for a guest squad, including one from 3×3 heavyweight Mongolia.
