MERALCO star guard Chris Newsome took to heart the lessons he learned from four finals losses to Ginebra before.
Those setbacks toughened him up in his drive to become the Bolts’ “King” one day. That long-cherished crowning glory finally came last Sunday.
“The story behind it is just to have courage, to be able to try things and even if you fail, it is okay because you can still learn from it,” Newsome said after he was named the PBA Philippine Cup finals MVP. “You can continue to grow, and it’ll make you a better person at the end of the day.
“I learned from all my failures. I failed against Ginebra plenty of times in the finals and in those failures, that allowed me to push and elevate my game. You saw it pay off,” he added.
The 6-foot-2 Gilas Pilipinas standout shone in Meralco’s dramatic title conquest against fancied San Miguel Beer–none bigger than banging in a clutch fadeaway jumper from the baseline–and perhaps the biggest shot in his pro career–with 1.3 seconds to go in Game 6 before Beermen star June Mar Fajardo missed on a three-point try at the buzzer.
That booming shot hit nothing but the bottom of the net and reverberated inside the Smart Araneta Coliseum as the Bolts finally hit pay dirt with their first crown since taking their acts to the PBA in 2010.
