By MARK REY MONTEJO
Cliff Hodge has been with Meralco through thick and thin ever since he was drafted fourth overall by the Bolts in 2012.
So for the 36-year-old Hodge, it is always better to look at the brighter side of things and move forward after a loss.
“So we’ll learn from this. It’s a big loss, but I think it’ll make us more resilient, and I think it’ll work,” said Hodge moments after the Bolts succumbed to the San Miguel Beermen, 95-94, in Game 2 of the PBA Philippine Cup finals Friday night, June 7.
“It’ll be good for us,” he added.
The longest-tenured Meralco cager, who is playing for his 13th season, Hodge was aware of the opportunities that they missed which proved critical in their defeat.
“We had them on the ropes and we’re playing great, playing good team basketball. And you just gotta know that when you have somebody down, you take, you make sure you finish the job,” he said.
Hodge carried the scoring cudgels for Meralco, pumping in a conference-best 25 points on top of hauling nine rebounds in that game.
His performance had a huge impact in Meralco’s offensive end, which mostly relied on Chris Banchero, Allein Maliksi, Bong Quinto and Chris Newsome.
“It’s just opportunities were there, and whenever they’re there, I’ll take them. So yeah, it’s just what the defense was doing for us, and they wanted me to be open, so I was taking advantage of that,” said Hodge when asked if his offensive tally was part of the Bolts’ game plan.
For Hodge, he is not giving up his hopes of tasting the championship.
“I’m gonna do whatever I can to try and win this first championship. And I still got a chance,” he said.
Game 3 is set at 6:15 p.m Sunday, June 9, at the same venue.
