THERE’S the star and the second fiddle. And then there’s that third fiddle.
“I am here to help the team and do my job. I am not after the spotlight nor any individual awards,” Magnolia big Ian Sangalang told BusinessMirror on the eve Monday of Game Three of the Hotshots-Meralco Bolts semifinals series.
“I am happy with the huge role and the minutes given to me and every time I play, I am not thinking about myself,” he said. “My approach is just to be positive.”
Sangalang has slowly earned the reputation as Magnolia’s “Silent Operator” especially in the Philippine Cup. He averaged 17.91 points, 7.27 rebounds and 1.18 assists in the elimination round but has yet to lure attention from teammates Paul Lee and now, transferee Calvin Abueva.
“If they do not notice me, that’s fine as long as I am playing and helping my team,” the 6-foot-7 Sangalang, the 2013 second overall rookie pick behind No. 1 Greg Slaughter, said. “I’m not going to waste my opportunities in helping my team.”
Sangalang and Abueva, the leading candidate for the Best Player of the Conference award, were teammates when the San Sebastian Stags won the 2009 National Collegiate Athletic Association title.
“I’m really happy about what’s happening to Calvin [Abueva]. He works so hard each day, and he deserves everything,” he said. “He’s now my teammate and it’s good we’re together. If the people notice him that much, I am happy for him.”
Sangalang was instru-mental in leading Magnolia to an 8-3 win-loss record in the eliminations and also helped his squad sweep Rain or Shine in the quarterfinals.
Magnolia, won Game One, 88-79, on Sunday, is gunning for a 2-0 advantage over Meralco in Wednesday’s Game Two of the race-to-four series set at 6 p.m. at the Don Honorio Ventura State University gym in Bacolor, Pampanga.
Sangalang expects nothing but an aggressive Bolts side.
“It’s going to be another grinding game,” Sangalang said. “We expect Meralco to go all out,” he said.
Meralco’s veteran head coach Norman Black said they couldn’t afford to go down 0-2 in the series.
“Game Two is very crucial because we can’t afford to go down 0-2. So we just have to play much better [than Game One],” Black said. “We must get rebounds much better and cut down on our turnovers because they led to a lot of easy points for the Hotshots.”
TNT Tropang Giga, meanwhile, goes for a 2-0 lead over San Miguel Beer in the other semifinals series at 3 p.m.