CONVERGE and Terrafirma try to stay unbeaten to start the PBA 50th Season Commissioner’s Cup, as Rain or Shine makes its conference debut on Saturday in faraway Ynares Center-Montalban.
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CONVERGE VS. TERRAFIRMA
When: Saturday, March 14. 5 p.m.
Where: Ynares Center-Montalban
Gunning for solo lead
Converge and Terrafirma square off with the early leadership on the line. The FiberXers and the Dyip were the opening day winners.
There wasn’t really a surprise that the FiberXers, a team with high expectations, defeated Macau, 102-94. It was the Dyip who made noise that day when they routed Titan Ultra, 112-82, their biggest winning margin in franchise history.
Dyip going for 2-0
After its lopsided win, Terrafirma will look to make it 2-0 for the first time after two seasons. The last time the Dyip got off to such start was during the 48th Season Philippine Cup when they still had Juami Tiongson, Stephen Holt, Javi Gomez de Liano, and Kemark Carino, among others. Ironically, Terrafirma’s first win during that stretch was against Converge via a 107-99 win.
Containing Jerrick
Converge will have to put the clamps on Jerrick Ahanmisi if it wants to win against Terrafirma. Ahanmisi exploded with 26 points while shooting 10-of-20 from the field against Titan Ultra. He also produced in other areas, dishing out seven assists and even collected five steals.
Battle between 7-footers
The game between Converge and Terrafirma will see two seven-footers in Kylor Kelley and Ali Mubashar.
Kelley was as good as advertised on the defensive end against Macau when he had four blocks to go along with 12 points and 19 rebounds. Mubashar also had a solid outing when it had 27 points and 11 rebounds in the blowout win over Titan Ultra.
RAIN OR SHINE VS. MACAU
When: Saturday, March 14. 7:30 p.m.
Where: Ynares Center-Montalban
Elasto Painters debut
Rain or Shine plays in its first game of the Commissioner’s Cup when it tackles Macau. The Elasto Painters eye redemption after failing to reach the semifinals of the Philippine Cup when they were ousted by Meralco, the first time after four conferences that they failed to reach that far.
Expect contributions from rookies
Rain or Shine got a big boost from its rookies in Jun Roque, Deo Cuajao, and Joshua David during the preseason, so expect them to also do the same during the conference. The three signed up for the conference after finishing their commitments with either collegiate or professional ball clubs, adding depth to the Elasto Painters.
Macau eyes bounce back
The Black Knights were beaten by Converge, 102-94, but they actually led for the most part of the game until the FiberXers went on a binge in the fourth quarter. Learning to close out games needs to be quick for Macau with only one day of preparation for the match against Rain or Shine.
Falling in love with the four-ball
Macau shot a ton of fours during the match against Converge, going 4-of-19.
The Black Knights may be still adjusting to playing with an additional rainbow arc, being their first PBA game as a guest team. But one thing is certain, they need to make their fours if they take the same volume as in their first game.
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