Making up for lost time, Chris Banchero gives Aces a lift with near triple-double

CHRIS Banchero’s ankle injury is a thing of a past, putting up solid numbers as Alaska evened the semifinal series with Meralco in the PBA Governors’ Cup.

In his second game back from an ankle injury, Banchero wound up two assists short of a triple double, scoring 13 points and pulling down 11 rebounds.

Banchero said he has already recovered from an ankle injury that limited him in the quarterfinal match against San Miguel and Game One of the semifinals against Meralco.

“I told them my ankle feels good,” said Banchero. “I’m good to go. I’m a hundred percent.”

Banchero said he also took it upon himself to make sure that he will play more minutes in Game Two being an important match for the Aces.

“It was a huge game. Probably the biggest game for us. This third conference is our last run to try to win a championship. I knew how important this game was. We all did. Guys stepped up tonight. Simon (Enciso) did a great job as well,” Banchero said.

Banchero said he made a concerted effort to get his team going by dishing out scoring opportunities for his teammates. He only had four assists in Game One.

One of the recipients of Banchero’s assists while Simon Enciso, who had 23 points in Game Two.

“Just got to get guys involved. I was able to get into the middle and made things happen. It was good. I was able to get out in transition and continue to push guys to knock down shots,” said Banchero.