Tim Cone remains unfazed after lopsided Game 3 loss to TNT: ‘We’re still in control of the series’

Brgy. Ginebra just absorbed its first defeat in the Finals of the 2020 PBA Philippine Cup.

The Gin Kings, who won Games 1 & 2 of the best-of-seven series in comeback fashion, failed to continue the trend in Game 3 and took a 21-point beating from a vengeful TNT side.

With the series shifting to a crucial Game 4 on Sunday, head coach Tim Cone remains unfazed despite the lopsided setback and is keeping his eyes glued to the prize.

“We’re not here to win a game. I tell that to the players all the time. We’re not here to win a game, we’re here to win a series,” said Cone.

“A 21-point loss is the same thing as a one-point loss in a series. Maybe not in an eliminations or whatever. But in a series, there’s no pogi points for blowing a team out. You don’t get an extra win for blowing a team out. You just get one win,” he added.

The league’s winningest mentor admitted that the fightback from a 15-point deficit in Game 2 took its toll on the team and it was evident in the succeeding match.

“The game before this one, it took a lot out of us. You took so much effort to win the game before or in this case, the two games before,” said Cone. “They just had a whole lot more energy than we did. I just felt that after the first quarter, we played really tired.”

With the Gin Kings still clinging to a 1-game edge, Cone is hoping to regain momentum and move one step closer to ending the team’s 13-year title drought in the All-Filipino conference.

“We’re still in control of the series. They broke whatever little momentum we had. And we’ll see if we can get it back. We’ll go from here. Last game is over. We’ll move on and focus on the next one.”