Magnolia may have armed itself with a twice-to-beat advantage, but head coach Chito Victolero is not taking any chances against a determined and dangerous TNT side.
Just five days removed from their end of elimination round clash, the third-seeded Hotshots and Tropang 5G lock horns once again with a bigger prize at stake as the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup quarterfinals action erupts today at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.
Tipoff is at 7:30 p.m. after the 5 p.m. curtain-raiser battle between No. 2 seed NLEX and Rain or Shine.
Magnolia barely escaped the grand slam-seeking TNT, 88-83, last Friday in a huge win that formalized its entry in the Top Four with a win-once incentive.
Victolero warns his men that the Tropang 5G are coming not just for payback but also for survival in what has turned out to be a virtual best-of-three game.
“All you can do is prepare and hopefully we’ll have another chance in the endgame just like in this one,” Victolero said.
TNT is out to beat the odds as it tries to remain on track in its season sweep quest after ruling the Governors’ Cup and Commissioner’s Cup.
Victolero is very much aware of that.
“It’s a 50-50 chance against this team. There’s no real advantage,” he said.
Magnolia will again lean on young bloods Zav Lucero, who dropped 24 last game, rookie Jerom Lastimosa and William Navarro along with grizzled veterans Mark Barroca, Paul Lee, Ian Sangalang and ageless Rafi Reavis.
The Tropang 5G’s character will be tested after coming off back-to-back losses. Calvin Oftana, RR Pogoy, Kelly Williams, Poy Erram and Jordan Heading banner TNT.
Meanwhile, Road Warriors head coach Jong Uichico braces for a dogfight against the more experienced Elasto Painters.
Even with a quarters bonus, the mentor still considers NLEX as the underdog being in an unfamiliar territory facing a battle-tested crew.
“We’re not that seasoned, unlike Rain or Shine. Though they are young, they have some young players, they’re already seasoned,” Uichico said.
Rain or Shine had been in the semifinals of the last two conferences, something that concerns the mentor.
“We are (relatively) new to this situation. We’ve always been either looking up at the standings or not even given the chance to look at the standings,” Uichico added.
“But it is a good situation. We’ll just try to do the best we can with this opportunity that was given to us. Hopefully, we’ll get over the hump.”
NLEX defeated then-debuting Rain or Shine, 109-95, in their elims meeting last 12 April.
High-scoring guard Robert Bolick leads the Road Warriors’ charge with rookie Xyrus Torres, who fired 28 points against the Elasto Painters in the elims, JB Bahio, Javee Mocon and Anthony Semerad.
Rain or Shine is banking on Adrian Nocum, Jhonard Clarito, Santi Santillan, Gian Mamuyac and Anton Asistio.