Hard work pays off for top rookie Holt

Source: The Manila times
Author: Richard Dy

MANILA, Philippines: This season's top rookie pick Stephen Holt is eager to get Terrafirma over the hump.

And it showed in the team's conference-opening game where the Dyip grind out a 107-99 win against the Converge FiberXers in the PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup on Friday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

The 6-foot-4 Filipino-American guard fired a career-high 27 points, to go along with 10 rebounds, five steals and four assists to lead the Dyip off to a rousing start for the All-Filipino conference.

Holt said the all-around game was a byproduct of hard work during the conference brea. The Dyip bombed out of the Commissioner's Cup, losing their last eight games to finish at 2-9.

"I just went to work in the offseason. I didn't go on vacation, but been at the gym or weights

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For me, at the end of the day, I've been a pro for 10 years, been in high-level leagues, I just try to stay consistent in my role, and whether my shot falls, just got to continue to be the leader for this group," Holt told media men after the game.

The former Saint Mary's standout said the team can't stay too high after that win, knowing the Dyip have a long way to go in their quest to end their 17-conference playoff drought.

No wonder, he emphasized the importance of staying together, focusing on improving team defense, while trying to provide the leadership, along with veteran Juami Tiongson.

"The work is going to always show and I'm happy how we adjusted in practice, and (see) just how hard we compete," shared the 32-year-old Holt, who spent the past 10 years playing in Europe before joining the PBA draft last year.

"Again, I'm super proud of the guys, competing both ends of the floor. We had gang rebounding, hopefully get to transition, shooting threes and be unselfish," he added.

While Terrafirma is slated to play four games in the next two weeks, Holt knows playing hard-nosed defense is a must for the Dyip to stay in playoff contention.

Holt, who won a championship in the pro league in Czech Republic had five steals, a testament to his strong drive to lead by example.

"I always take pride in my defense, but the biggest challenge for me, is now I'm playing 40-minute game comparing to Europe. (Here, I) play a lot of minutes for coach (John Cardel) so I just pick my moments, go to passing lanes, pressuring," shared Holt, whose impressive basketball resume includes playing in Australia, Spain, Czech Republic, Poland, Kazakhstan and Romania.

"But I always take pride in my defense. I feel like I can be one of the better defenders in the league so I'm trying to give my teammates the energy on defense," he added.

Terrafirma will return to action on Sunday and will gun for its second straight win when it battles NLEX at the Big Dome.