Bruiser Miranda relishes chance at NLEX

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BY ADRIAN STEWART CO
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Friday, March 9, 2018
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MANILA – He was buried at the bench when he was with Phoenix Fuel Masters. Now Michael Miranda relishes the chance head coach Yeng Guiao gave him with NLEX Road Warriors.

Miranda played a key role in NLEX’s semifinals slot-clinching victory against Alaska Aces on Wednesday evening, with crucial conversions down the stretch to finish with 12 points and three rebounds.

With Road Warriors trailing 80-83, Miranda buried a three-pointer from top of the key to tie the score at 83-all. He also converted two pressure packed free throws to snatch the advantage with over a minute left in the game.

“Sinabi nga ni coach Yeng na binibigyan niya ako ng break, siyempre kailangan ko suklian iyong binibigay nilang tiwala dito sa team,” the 6-foot-6 bruiser said. “Kaya malaki ang pasasalamat ko kay coach.”

For his part, Guiao said Miranda – a 27-year-old Santa Ana, Pampanga native – was just a diamond in a rough and has the potential to become one of the productive big men in the league.

“Miranda was just a potential aching to expose himself given the chance,” said Guiao. “He really rewarded the team by making the most out of the chance given to him. It’s the story of a lot of players – players languishing on the bench.”

“But when you give them a break, they will step up and prove themselves. That’s just an example in Mike Miranda,” the seven-time PBA champion coach said of his new project player.

But Road Warriors cannot afford to celebrate too much its franchise’s first-ever semifinals stint as it will be up for a battle against the No. 2 seed Magnolia Hotshots.

“Gagawin lang namin iyong pwede naming gawin. Lahat naman pwede paghandaan,” Miranda said. “Kailangan pa rin namin magtrabaho kasi semis na ’to eh, ’di na basta-basta. Work hard pa rin and play hard, and play as a team.”/PN
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