A 31-point blowout of Converge kicked off Magnolia’s Philippine Cup title hunt on Saturday when the PBA returned to the historic Rizal Memorial Coliseum after four decades. But the curtain raiser between Terrafirma and Blackwater proved to be the game of the day as the Dyip came back from 19 points down for a 92-91 win behind Juami Tiongson’s game-winning three.
Here are the takeaways from the Hotshots-FiberXers and Dyip-Bossing games.
1. Coming up short of ending a six-year championship drought, Magnolia tries again this All-Filipino conference, and a 106-75 rout of winless Converge was a perfect starting point for the Hotshots. As expected, tags of ‘Introvoys’ are again being labeled on the Purefoods franchise which had a hot start during the Commissioner’s Cup, only to fall short of winning it all after losing to San Miguel in the finals. Coach Chito Victolero however, said the Hotshots were not disappointed with the result and hardly affected by bashers on social media.
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2. Too early to tell if Terrafirma already adopted a winning culture, but the come-from-behind victory over Blackwater could be a good sign. Trailing 59-40 early in the third period, the Dyip could have simply rolled over and died. Instead, Tiongson, rookie Stephen Holt, Isaac Go, and Javi Gomez de Liano willed the Dyip back and capped the dramatic comeback with Tiongson’s game-winning three in the endgame. The thrilling win halted a two-game skid for the team and improved to a 3-2 slate.
3. For the second straight game, free throw shooting woes cost Blackwater a win. Rey Nambatac could only split his foul shots to give the Bossing a two-point lead and opened the door for Tiongson’s endgame heroics. In the previous game against NLEX, Rey Suerte flubbed five of his six free throws in the final two minutes of a 103-97 loss. The Bossing have now lost two in a row after starting the tournament on a perfect 3-0 slate.
4. Converge suffered a fifth straight loss and kept the team on track to landing the No. 1 overall pick in the Season 49 draft. The one-sided loss against Magnolia was its worst so far this conference, and the FiberXers are averaging a losing margin of 21.6 points in their last three outings. Six games are left for the team in the eliminations, and three of them are against heavyweights in Barangay Ginebra, TNT, and defending champion San Miguel.
5. The PBA failed to fill in the Rizal Memorial Coliseum, but playing again in the historic, 90-year-old arena was a refreshing sight for the league, which last held games in the iconic venue during the early 80s. Commissioner Willie Marcial said games will be staged again at the Rizal Coliseum by next season, hopefully between San Miguel and Meralco, two winning franchises in the past that had memorable battles in the same playing arena during their time in the defunct MICAA (Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association).
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