Meralco has bagged the No. 2 seed in the quarterfinals in Group A of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Governors’ Cup.
But the Bolts’ quest to settle an unfinished business in the import-laden conference that they failed to annex in four championship appearances doesn’t come any easier.
The reigning Philippine Cup champion’s position has put them on a collision course with either powerhouse squads San Miguel Beer or Barangay Ginebra San Miguel — the two teams it had recent finals history with.
A pick your poison situation for the Luigi Trillo-mentored squad heading into the best-of-five quarters.
“Moving forward, nothing’s gonna be easy at this point for us,” Trillo said.
Meralco finished the double-round group eliminations with a 7-3 win-loss record to lock the second seeding, taking on the No. 3 in the other group.
As of press time, the Gin Kings (6-3) are squaring off with NLEX in their final assignment in Group B. The Beermen closed the round with a 6-4 card.
“It’s either you face them now in the quarters. Or the semis or even in the finals. The semis and finals, it’s even a best-of-seven,” Trillo said.
“We all know that in this type of series, the deeper teams are really gonna go deep. One way or another we’ll get to face them if we go all the way whether in the quarters, semis or the finals.”
If Meralco takes San Miguel, it will be a rematch of the recent Philippine Cup finals won by the Bolts in an exciting six-game series.
The Beermen dropped their last game against Blackwater sans injured import Jordan Adams (hamstring).
“We don’t know the situation of (Jordan) Adams but we know San Miguel’s gonna be ready. We just faced them in the championship,” the mentor said.
A Bolts-Gin Kings showdown, meanwhile, will rekindle the two teams’ championship rivalry.
Ginebra behind its resident import Justin Brownlee broke Meralco’s heart in four Governors’ Cup finals pairings.
“We also know how different Ginebra’s flow is with a lot of the good guys with them. You know (Justin) Brownlee. We’ve beaten them in the (previous conferences) series but Brownlee hasn’t been in those series we’ve won,” Trillo said.