TWELVE days since its last game in the PBA 50th Season Philippine Cup, Barangay Ginebra returns for a game against Converge. The league also goes back to one of its regular homes for the Friday doubleheader, to be played at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
Magnolia and Blackwater also go up against each other on Friday at the Big Dome. Preview of the match-ups below.
MAGNOLIA VS. BLACKWATER
When: Friday, November 14. 5:15 p.m.
Where: Smart-Araneta Coliseum
Respectable showing vs. San Miguel
Magnolia may have lost to San Miguel in its previous game, 94-92, last November 7 but head coach LA Tenorio was still happy with how the team performed after they fought back from 18 points down to make it a ballgame in the second half.
“‘Yung second half, ‘yun ‘yung dapat na game namin from start to finish. We cannot afford to give a team like San Miguel an early lead like that. Our chances of winning, kapag ganun na ang nangyayari, medyo mahihirapan talaga kami. But hats off to all the players. They fought back,” said Tenorio.
If they bring that A-performance against Blackwater again, Magnolia has a great shot at returning to its winning ways.
Barefield looks to repeat
Sedrick Barefield had a monster effort for Blackwater in its previous outing against Converge when he hit for 33 points. Unfortunately, the Bossing lost a close one, 99-94, last Saturday. But the squad draws confidence from Barefield’s splendid play.
Zavier-Jerom tandem doing wonders
The 1-2 punch of Zavier Lucero and Jerom Lastimosa has been one of the reasons why the Hotshots are among the early leaders in the conference with a 4-2 win-loss card. Lucero had 20 points and Lastimosa had 17 in the Hotshots defeat to Ginebra, with the two combining for 27 points in the second half.
BARANGAY GINEBRA VS. CONVERGE
When: Friday, November 14. 7:30 p.m.
Where: Smart-Araneta Coliseum
Evening things up
Ginebra will look to go back to .500 when it goes up against Converge in a must-see second game. The Gin Kings are aiming for their second straight win after they outplayed NLEX, 104-74, two Sundays ago. Ginebra was supposed to go up against Titan Ultra last Sunday, but it was postponed due to typhoon Uwan. The Gin Kings will be well-rested going into the game against the young, upstart FiberXers.
A test for Converge
Converge are coming off a 99-94 win over Blackwater last Saturday that improved its win-loss record to 4-2, but had to overcome Sedrick Barefield’s explosion in the second half. The FiberXers can no longer afford a similar occurrence against the Gin Kings who have more ammunition aside from the crowd. The young studs of Converge that includes rookie Juan Gomez de Liano will be tested by the veterans of Ginebra.
Last two games for Japeth
Japeth Aguilar has been on fire during the last two games of Ginebra, averaging 22.5 points and 8.5 rebounds in that stretch. Aguilar will look to continue that performance but it will be against the Converge twin towers of Justin Arana and Justine Baltazar this time around.
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