By Ernest Hernandez
The match between the San Miguel Beermen and the NLEX Road Warriors saw a lot of heated moments, particularly the last incident involving Chris Ross and coach Yeng Guiao. Ross flared up in the dying minutes of the fourth quarter, reportedly because Guiao hurled racial slurs.
“According to Chris, tinawag siyang n****. That’s what he explained to me,” said SMB head coach Leo Austria.
“I’m confronting Chris Ross because he’s one important player on my team – especially in the endgame. But that’s the word that he doesn’t want to hear from people,” he said. “Nag-flare up yung bata, so I cannot blame him.”
Ross played a total of 37 minutes and finished the game with 4 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists. Austria was seen trying to calm Ross during the commotion and get his mind back into the game.
“Fortunately, we were leading by 12 points with 1:30 left—already a won game for us, but I hope this thing is a lesson for any player – especially the key players in the endgame,” said Austria. “We cannot afford to lose players kasi imagine, na-thrown out siya. Eh kung close game ito?”
On the other side, Guiao aired his side on the incident.
“Andoon siya sa tapat namin. Daldal siya nang daldal. Sa akin naman, pagnagkaganoon, siguro respeto na lang. Lumayo ka na lang,” said Guiao.
“Tutal, mananalo naman kayo. I just felt that I didn’t understand what he was saying and talking about. Nakipag-trash talking din ako sa kanya, pero wala naman yun,” he added. “Eh ako lang ang nakatayo doon. Di ko alam kung sa akin or doon sa bench namin. But he was right in front of our bench. The game was a foregone conclusion at that time, so manahimik ka na lang.”
With the accusations of Chris Ross on calling him with racial slurs, Guiao denies that he did such thing.
“Hindi ko sinabi ang ‘N-word’. Ewan ko kung may nakarinig doon. Anong na-offend siya?”, defended Guiao.
But Guiao admits that he indeed flashed a dirty finger on Ross.
“Kasama na rin yun, pero it’s part of the psychological warfare. Malakas din siyang mang-asar, di lang sa amin. Every time naman na merong ganoong skirmishes, we also know what he’s capable of.”
