Tim Cone Apologizes to Alaska for San Mig Coffee Walkout

San Mig Coffee coach Tim Cone took to Twitter to apologize to the Alaska Aces and coach Luigi Trillo for his team’s walkout in their tuneup game on Tuesday.

“No big deal. We asked to halt the practice game. We weren’t ready to play. My fault in scheduling it,” wrote Cone on his Twitter account.

He added that the ejection of Jerwin Gaco was not the reason for his decision to have the game halted.

“It was more about the fear of injury to our key guys than the call. We’re not in shape yet and guys were cramping. Again, my fault,” added Cone.

Cone asked the tuneup to be stopped in the third quarter shortly after Gaco was called for a flagrant foul for elbowing Eddie Laure. Trillo told InterAKTV that the call was justified.

San Miguel Corporation official Noli Eala earlier claimed that the call was the reason for the stoppage.

“Alaska-San Mig Coffee game stopped because of another bad call by refs,” wrote Eala on his Twitter account.

-InterAKTV

Alaska Aces , Jerwin Gaco , PBA , San Mig Coffee Mixers , Tim Cone

San Mig Coffee Walked Out of its Tuneup Match against Alaska

It turns out that coffee and milk don’t always make for a perfect combination.

San Mig Coffee walked out of its tuneup match against Alaska on Tuesday at the Reyes Gym after Mixers coach Tim Cone disagreed with a call by the referees.

The Aces were leading 63-50 in the third quarter when San Mig Coffee forward Jerwin Gaco was thrown out of the game for warding off with his elbow against Alaska’s Eddie Laure. Cone vehemently protested the call before leading his team out of the court.

“Cone proceeds to Alaska bench, shakes hands of Aces coaching staff. Tapos ang laro,” wrote veteran journalist Dennis Principe on his Twitter account, where he provided updates on the game.

Cone refused to take calls by InterAKTV on the matter.

Alaska coach Luigi Trillo, meanwhile, said the call on Gaco was correct, saying that it really was flagrant.

It marked the second straight day with a tuneup game involving a PBA team being halted. On Monday, a tuneup game between Barangay Ginebra San Miguel and the Qatar national team was stopped after an altercation between Kerby Raymundo and a Qatari center.

-Rey Joble, InterAKTV

Alaska Aces , Jerwin Gaco , San Mig Coffee Mixers , Tim Cone