One would think Alaska’s Tim Cone, with all his 13 titles in nearly 30 years of coaching in the PBA, should have all his plays down pat.

Wrong, as LA Tenorio, the Accel-PBA Press Corps Player of the Week for the period Feb. 21 to 27, has just given Cone something relatively new to chew on.

“I’m kind of learning my lesson now. I’m finally wising up, getting smarter in my old age," said Cone after his heady playmaker came up big in the Aces’ first two games in the mid-season PBA Commissioner’s Cup.

He was of course referring to going to Tenorio down the stretch in a close contest.

“Let LA have the ball in his hands. He’ll make something happen, whether it’s a shot, or a pass, or getting the foul or whatever," Cone stated. "It’s funny, you know, I don’t go to LA enough down the stretch. I usually go to a guy who can break down the defense easily, someone like Cyrus (Baguio) or the import, or Joe (Devance)."

“I don’t go to LA enough," Cone reiterated, shaking his head.

Tenorio prompted Cone to re-think his future options by hitting a decisive triple and pulling off a steal, all inside the final four seconds to lift Alaska to a thrilling 95-94 win over crowd favorite Barangay Ginebra last Sunday.

His endgame heroics capped an 18-point, six-assist, four-rebound night for Tenorio, who had finished with 15 points and six assists in the Aces’ 106-82 opening-game win against Powerade Wednesday.

But it was against the Kings when Tenorio shone brightest. He towed Alaska to join Rain or Shine for the early lead in the nine-game eliminations and edged teammate Baguio and Air21’s Josh Urbiztondo for the scribes’ citation.

“LA’s just got nerves of steel," stressed Cone. “LA just has that personality, those nerves of steel. He’s not afraid to take shots."

Cone should have had an inkling of what to expect since he was already being mesmerized by Tenorio even before the conference started.

“In a practice game and the whole pre-conference, he hasn’t missed," Cone recalled. “It just seems like he never misses a shot anymore. From the perimeter, three-point shots, two-point shots, the 15-footers, and that has given him an extra weapon."

Tenorio seemed as if he faded in the last two games of Alaska’s Philippine Cup quarterfinals duel with Ginebra as the Aces lost, 1-2, and wound up a disappointing sixth just a tournament after topping the Fiesta Conference with Diamon Simpson.

Cone has a ready explanation for that, too.

“I think of all our players last conference, LA was the most worn-out," he said. “He had to expend so much energy and it was really hard for him to get his motor going."

The three-week break the Aces had in between conferences seemed to have worked wonders for Tenorio.

“Now he’s coming back. He’s re-focused, his mind is sharp, he’s making the right plays, and he’s playing like the LA of the Diamon Simpson conference," said Cone