We’ll just prepare well for them. I’m always confident. We know whom we’re up against.

JUSTIN Brownlee (right) and Ginebra will again test the mettle of Cliff Hodge and Meralco.

Emotions are expected to fly as the league’s hottest teams in Ginebra and Meralco renew their rivalry in the resumption of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Governors’ Cup today at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Game time is at 6:45 p.m. with the Kings and the Bolts — the fiercest rivals in this season-ending conference — looking for a victory to cement their hold on the third spot entering the crucial stretch of the eliminations.

Also seeking for a big push heading into the playoffs are NorthPort and Alaska, who will tip things off at 4:30 p.m. to usher in the return of the league from a brief holiday break.

Ginebra and Meralco, the protagonists in the action-packed and dramatic finals showdowns in 2016 and 2017, are tied at the third spot with 5-2 win-loss cards, just a heartbeat away from leaders NLEX and TNT KaTropa, who fashion a 7-1 and 6-1 marks, respectively.

But the Kings are tipped to march with fire in their eyes.

They are in the middle of a sizzling four-game streak with the latest coming off last Wednesday when they brought down Blackwater, 101-93.

In that game, former Best Import awardee Justin Brownlee registered his fourth triple-double of the conference with 17 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists while LA Tenorio unlocked another milestone when he became the seventh player to drain 1,0000 three-pointers and seventh to swipe 800 steals.

At the end of the night, the wily playmaker from Ateneo de Manila University submitted 20 points, seven rebounds and five assists, enough to impress head coach Tim Cone, who instructed the Kings to go all out against Blackwater knowing that Meralco will be a tough nut to crack.

“We’ve got Meralco coming up. They’re one of the league leaders and they’re playing so well,” said Cone, wary of the Bolts who are being led by fellow grand-slam coach Norman Black.

Cone dug deep into his memory bank and recalled that the Bolts, powered by seasoned import Allen Durham, gave them a tough time before winning their back-to-back Governors’ Cup trophies.

Durham and the Bolts are also on a tear.

They are fresh from a two-game steak and registered an almost flawless performance against the league’s toughest team in San Miguel Beer, leading to a massive 125-99 victory.

Durham torched the Beermen with a triple-double performance of 29 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists while Baser Amer chipped in 26 points, seven rebounds and five assists, that prompted Cone to beat the war drums in anticipation for an all-out battle against their old foes.

“We’ve had so many battles against Durham and this Meralco team. We’re going to play a lot better against them than what we did against Blackwater to be able to compete and run away with an important win,” said Cone, who has 21 PBA titles in his growing collection.

But the Bolts have the same line of thinking.

Aside from trying to avenge their heartbreaks in 2016 and 2017, Meralco coach Norman Black is also out to deliver their best performance to boost their ranking and join sister teams, NLEX and TNT KaTropa, on top of the totem pole.

He said they have to shut down Brownlee and limit the touches of swingman Scottie Thompson, who is starting to do some damage after a rusty start.

“We’ll just prepare well for them. I’m always confident. We know whom we’re up against,” said Black, who won the grand slam for the Beermen in 1989.

“We know Brownlee has been playing at a high level and even Scottie Thompson had picked up his game the last time they played. It’s going to be really tough. It’s another big game for us for sure.”

Also tipped to draw interest is the face-off between Brownlee and Durham.

Durham has been averaging 29.1 points, 8.0 rebounds and 7.0 assists per game while Brownlee’s numbers are quite similar with 29.7 points, 15.0 rebounds and 9.0 assists per outing.