By ADRIAN STEWART CO

Juan Gomez de Liaño made his presence felt as the BC Wolves scored its second straight win in the European North Basketball League (ENBL) yesterday (Philippine time).

The Filipino-Italian guard tallied 22 points, five steals and four rebounds as the BC Wolves walloped Valmiera Glass, 89-60, at the Valmiera Olympic Center.

The Lithuania-based BC Wolves were dominant from the opening half as they were ahead, 36-27, at the half before they reached as high as 30 points in the second half.

Gomez de Liaño, a former University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons star, said he was thankful to head coach Treneio Rimo for his lengthy playing time against Valmiera.

“I am always ready when the opportunity comes. Playing back-to-back games is tough but I am just having the ‘next man up’ mentality,” De Liaño said.

“We played for two days and I think some of my teammates were a little tired, so I am glad that the coach gave me an opportunity and I was able to show what I can do and contribute,” he added.

Gomez de Liaño, a mainstay of the Gilas Pilipinas national men’s basketball team, said the team put a premium on defense, as shown in their two victories.

“In those two wins, we put emphasis on defense. On the offensive end, we just let it flow, we just stuck on the game plan and we are glad we got the two Ws,” the Filipino-Italian said.

On Tuesday, January 10 (Philippine time), Gomez de Liaño was used sparingly as the BC Wolves scored a come-from-behind 79-77 win over Tartu Ulikool Maks & Moorits.

Gomez de Liaño and BC Wolves were down 32-44 at the half before turning things around in the second half with their perimeter shooting to score the close win./ASC, WDJ