The 6-foot-6 Johnson led the Realtors to a quarterfinal stint in the Fiesta Conference last season, his solid performance enough to make him Sta. Lucia’s first choice for the coming import-flavored tilt.
“The good thing about Anthony Johnson is the energy he brings every game. He’s also no stranger to the things that we’re doing," Sta. Lucia coach Boyet Fernandez told GMANews.TV
Johnson actually first played for the Coca-Cola Tigers in 2007-08, but was replaced in the elimination round. The following season, it was the Realtors’ turn to get his services.
The Realtors are coming off a heartbreaking campaign in the Philippine Cup. They were a win away from an outright quarterfinal berth, but suddenly found themselves taking an early vacation in the company of Barako Bull, Burger King and Coca-Cola.
Once leading by six games over Rain or Shine and Coca-Cola, the Realtors surprisingly got booted out early after crucial losses.
They battled Purefoods for an outright quarterfinals berth, but lost and got relegated to the knockout wildcard phase.
Feeling the fatigue, the no. 6 seed Realtors played the no. 9 Elasto Painters and lost steam, 86-90, to eventually bow out of the tournament.
“We played back-to-back games and those games were both exhausting matches," said Fernandez. “There were opportunities for us to get into the quarterfinals, but there were several factors that hindered our chances."
Fernandez said that had San Miguel Beer’s protest against Talk ‘N Text been upheld, Sta. Lucia would have had a better chance of making it to the quarterfinals. Instead, the Realtors were forced to fight it out for a place in the quarters.
“We cannot do anything about it. That’s the decision of the commissioner so we have to live with it," said Fernandez, who steered the Realtors to the 2007-2008 Philippine Cup crown.
Source: Author Unknown | GMANews.TV
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