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PBA: Nowhere to go but up for KIA, insists coach

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Camille B. Naredo, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2017/sports/08/14/081417-kia.jpg"/><figcaption>KIA players try to stop Rain or Shine&#x27;s Maverick Ahanmisi (13) from scoring in their PBA Governors&#x27; Cup game. Josh Albelda, <a href="http://sports.abs-cbn.com/basketball/photos" target="_blank">ABS-CBN Sports</a></figcaption></figure></div>MANILA, Philippines – Even as the losses keep coming for the KIA Picanto, coach Chris Gavina is doing all he can to stay positive.KIA dropped to 0-6 in the 2017 PBA Governors&#x27; Cup on Sunday after bowing to Rain or Shine, 94-86. This, despite a 30-point performance from import Markeith Cummings.&quot;All I can do is laugh right now, and try to stay positive in these hard times,&quot; Gavina said after the game.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://sports.abs-cbn.com/basketball/news/2017/08/13/new-look-ros-gets-back-track-keeps-kia-winless-29679">READ: New-look ROS gets back on track, keeps Kia winless</a></li></ul>Looking for &quot;positives&quot; in the midst of a six-game losing streak may be difficult, but Gavina said the Picanto showed signs of life against Rain or Shine that he did not see in their previous contests.&quot;I kind of made an example, where I figured there&#x27;s a little ember,&quot; he said. &quot;I told them when you start a fire, you need a small ember. I think we started a little bit of it tonight.&quot;&quot;It started from last week – we lost by 14 last week, and we lost by eight today. There&#x27;s a spark there, and there&#x27;s an opportunity to blow that ember and start a rapid fire,&quot; Gavina said. What gave the coach the little &quot;ember&quot; of hope on Sunday was that the Picanto displayed much better effort and desire against the Elasto Painters, compared to how they performed in previous games.&quot;Beyond the Xs and Os, I liked our effort. I liked the desire to win,&quot; he explained. &quot;That&#x27;s actually the first time I can say we had some levels of desire to win. For me, I&#x27;m gonna work off of that, and get us back to practice, just look to improve and use this little ember to start a fire.&quot;What doomed KIA was their poor bench production, as they only got a combined 18 points from their reserves. Gavina later called out players like Josan Nimes, Philip Paniamogan, Prince Caperal, and Bong Galanza, saying that they needed to be able to execute their game plan even in limited minutes.But he is confident that his reserves will pick up their game, while key contributors like Reden Celda and LA Revilla will regain their rhythm. Gavina was also mostly satisfied with the performance of their import, who tried his best to bring the team back in the fourth quarter but fell short.&quot;(Cummings) had 17 points in the fourth quarter,&quot; Gavina pointed out. &quot;He just didn&#x27;t get enough local support. His overall effort tonight was tremendous. I really wish it resulted to a win, but I think him and our young team are heading into some levels of positivity.&quot;&quot;I keep telling them that we&#x27;ve hit rock bottom, so there&#x27;s no other way but up,&quot; he emphasized. &quot;We gotta get to the lows to get to the highs.&quot;&quot;It&#x27;s one of the most used phrases, but that&#x27;s the honest truth.&quot;At 0-6, KIA&#x27;s hopes of advancing to the quarterfinals are dwindling, but at this point Gavina is simply looking for a breakthrough victory. He believes they can get that break soon, especially as they are set to play three teams with a combined 2-9 record in their next assignments.&quot;Yes, we&#x27;re 0-6, and there&#x27;s a lot of frustration going on, but we&#x27;re going on a three-game stretch where we have the capability to use this little moral victory for today, for being able to say that we were in the game until the end,&quot; he said.KIA plays GlobalPort (1-2) on Sunday.For more sports coverage, visit the <a href="http://sports.abs-cbn.com/" target="_blank">ABS-CBN Sports website</a>.

Even as the losses keep coming for the KIA Picanto, coach Chris Gavina is doing all he can to stay positive.

Even as the losses keep coming for the KIA Picanto, coach Chris Gavina is doing all he can to stay positive.

PBA: Nowhere to go but up for KIA, insists coach

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PBA: Nowhere to go but up for KIA, insists coach

Camille B. Naredo,

ABS-CBN News

Published August 14, 2017 10:22 PM PHT

Read More:

PBA

PBA Governors' Cup

KIA Picanto

Chris Gavina

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