The Final Score: For Luigi Trillo, now comes the hard part

Perhaps due to Alaska's relentless pressure defense, surely aided by the pestering genius of Alaska's designated irritant Calvin Abueva, San Mig Coffee broke down in game two of the PBA semifinals. As a result, Alaska got the breakthrough it needed. From a specific emotional standpoint, Alaska Head Coach Luigi Trillo got the breakthrough he needed. Alaska's victory in Game 2 was as much a success for one team as it was a success for one coach. [Related: Alaska Aces finally beat Cone's San Mig Coffee Mixers, even up series] At the end of game two, Trillo calmly shook hands with San Mig Coffee coaches. Like it was no big deal: one victory, one game. Anyway, you don't celebrate one conquest in the semis like it's game seven of the Finals. You especially don't pop confetti cannons after beating an opponent in a series-tying game. Alaska beat San Mig Coffee in one contest. Trillo beat Cone for one night. The end of the race is still nowhere in sight. Alaska knows better. Trillo knows this best. Maybe the voodoo magic that Cone has over Trillo is a blessing. It's always humbling to be dominated by a superior coach. Compared to Trillo, Cone has more experience, more championships, more believers, more everything. Well, maybe not everything. By losing to Cone all those times, frustrated repeatedly by the alleged Cone hex, Trillo gained an advantage. In the duel between a hall-of-fame coach and a coach who's currently just a visitor in the hall of fame, Trillo clearly has more to prove. That's the edge. When I look at Trillo pacing the sidelines, barking at referees, speaking with raging eloquence during timeouts, I don't see a willing victim. I see a predator. To bolster Trillo's predatory mindset, it helps to have guys like Abueva (for obvious reasons) and Jvee Casio (for reasons only obvious to those who know that Casio is really a T-Rex disguised as Phineas of Phineas and Ferb). Don't be fooled, armed with a ferocious team, Trillo is really a carnivore in a necktie.      To say Alaska plays "pain-in-the-neck" basketball is to pay them the highest compliment. Truly, nakakapikon silang kalaban. And Abueva isn't the only one who deserves credit for the team's reputation. Malamang nakakapikon to lose to a team which was stuck in a Dothraki wasteland not too long ago. Malamang nakakapikon to lose to a coach who will never be Tim Cone. To be fair, no one will ever be Tim Cone. Besides, I don't think Luigi is aiming to be Tim. He's aiming to beat Tim. By winning game two, Trillo has finally beaten Cone. At least the hex isn't absolute. That's not just a monkey off Alaska's back. That's a gorilla off their back. Yet the objective is to throw King Kong off the skyscraper. Trillo understands - beating Cone once holds little meaning unless it leads to beating Cone two more times. Now comes the hard part. Predators don't rely on partial victories. You either get your prey completely or you don't. - GMA News