MAGNOLIA and Rain or Shine face separate opponents, as they seek to go back in a share of first-place in the PBA 50th Season Philippine Cup team standings.
Preview of Friday’s double-header below:
TERRAFIRMA VS. RAIN OR SHINE
When: Friday, October 31. 5:15 p.m.
Where: Ynares Center-Antipolo
Back in action since improbable win
Rain or Shine returns to the court for the first time since its shocking win over Titan Ultra last Sunday when Anton Asistio drained four free throws after a foul by Joshua Munzon for a 112-111 win. With a 3-1 win-loss record, the Elasto Painters will look to join TNT and NLEX on top of the team standings.
Looking to arrest skid
Terrafirma tries to end its two-game losing streak against Rain or Shine. The Dyip were defeated by Magnolia, 104-93, last Saturday to fall iin the team standings with a 1-3 win-loss record.
Gabe Norwood putting huge numbers
Looking at Gabe Norwood’s statistics last Sunday and you wouldn’t think that this conference will be his last.
Norwood had 10 points, 12 rebounds, seven assists, and one steal in Rain or Shine’s win over Titan Ultra. Can he repeat against Terrafirma?
Shooting woes
Looking at the stat sheet, Terrafirma didn’t actually fare too bad. The Dyip outrebounded the Hotshots, 48-47, had more steals, 8-4, and even had less turnovers, 14-13.
But the major reason for their loss was their shooting woes. Terrafirma only shot 35 percent after making just one out of its 23 three-point shots, with Paul Garcia being the solitary player to make a trey.
PHOENIX VS. MAGNOLIA
When: Friday, October 31. 7:30 p.m.
Where: Ynares Center-Antipolo
Magnolia goes for share of lead
Magnolia also seeks joint leadership in the Philippine Cup when it faces Phoenix. Eyeing back-to-back wins, the Hotshots want a follow-up to their 104-93 victory over Terrafirma last Saturday.
Phoenix out to break losing streak
Phoenix is on a two-game losing skid after it bowed to Converge, 128-114, last Saturday to go down to 1-3. The Fuel Masters are looking to avoid the bottom of the standings alongside Titan Ultra.
Taha out for Phoenix
Yousef Taha has been relegated to Phoenix’s injured/ reserve list on the eve of the game against Magnolia. In the last match against Converge, Taha was rushed to the hospital for shortness of breath, and is obviously unfit for this game. RR Garcia has been activated in lieu of Taha.
Lee finally unholstered
After averaging a measly 0.7 points per game in the first three games, Paul Lee finally produced offensively for Magnolia against Terrafirma when he had 12 points.
Having Lee back in his scoring ways will be a huge boost for the Hotshots moving forward.
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