Colegio de San Juan de Letran head coach Allen Ricardo always knew the Squires could count on Syrex Silorio.
But the rookie tactician never expected the young cager to break out the way he did in Letran's game against College of Saint Benilde-La Salle Green Hills in Game 1 of their best-of-three finals series of the NCAA Season 98 juniors basketball tournament on Monday.
"Well talagang tinrabaho niya, nakita ko. Hindi lang itong game na 'to a, but during the practices nakita ko how 'yung focus niya na talagang gusto niyang kunin 'to," Ricardo said.
"That's why isa siya sa mga X-factors, which is dati ko na rin tinitignan kasi knowing Syrex, nandiyan lang siya e. Minsan eight points, minsan 10 points pero grabe 'yung puso nung bata."
"Pero hindi ko akalain na 27 points."
("I saw him really work for this. Not just in this game, but during the practices, I saw his focus and how much he wanted this... That's why he is one of our X-factors. Knowing Syrex, he's always there, eight points, 10 points, but he has great heart... I just didn't think it would be 27 points.")
Silorio already tallied 12 points by the end of the first half, where the Squires were down by as much as 12 points.
But the 18-year-old baller caught fire in the second half to lead Letran's comeback rally as he dropped 15 more to finish with a game-high 27 points alongside seven rebounds, three assists, one steal, and one block.
With Silorio pacing the team, these Squires placed themselves in position to make history by being one win away from giving the school its first juniors title after 22 years.
For his part, Silorio said he was surprised by the trust he received from the coaching staff as he shot 27 attempts from the field.
"'Di ko inexpect na gano'n 'yung binigay [na tiwala] sa akin ni Coach Allen tsaka binigay ko lang 'yung best ko ngayon," Silorio said.
"'Yung mga mintis hindi ko na iniisip tsaka kung iisipin ko pa 'yun, magsa-suffer 'yung team. Inisip ko na trabaho na lang sa loob ng court."
("I didn't expect that level of trust that Coach Allen gave me. I just gave my best today... I wan't thinking about the misses because if I do, the team might suffer I just thought about the job I had to do inside the court.")
—JMB, GMA Integrated News
