MAGNOLIA and NorthPort square off on Saturday in an out-of-town game in Candon City, Ilocos Sur in the PBA Philippine Cup.
The Hotshots will be playing their second match outside the metro in the conference, after winning against Phoenix, 118-99, last April 26 in Zamboanga City – a good omen as they now look to recover from their first defeat.
Here is a preview of the lone game of the night.
MAGNOLIA VS. NORTHPORT
When: Saturday, May 24. 7:30 p.m.
Where: Candon City Arena, Ilocos Sur
Hotshots look to regain lead in standings
Magnolia seeks to go back to its winning ways on Saturday, coming off of its first defeat of the conference at the hands of Rain or Shine, 119-105.
READ: NLEX becomes unlikely PBA co-leader after turning back Converge
As the Hotshots' winning streak to start the tournament was stopped at six, they now share first place with NLEX after its own 88-83 win over Converge last Friday at the Philsports Arena.
Going for quarterfinal berth
Stopped dead in its tracks in the previous game, Magnolia will once again go for a quarterfinals berth in the matchup against NorthPort.
If the Hotshots come through, it'll be much-welcome news to their title bid in the Philippine Cup after they were only seeded in the Commissioner’s Cup. Interestingly, Magnolia was booted out by the Batang Pier during that conference.
Nowhere to go but up for Magnolia in shooting
The Hotshots had their worst shooting performance of the conference in their previous game against Rain or Shine when they hit 42-percent from the field in 93 attempts. With the way Magnolia had been playing in the first six games of the conference, though, the likelihood that it will struggle again in the game against NorthPort is quite improbable.
NorthPort on a five-game losing streak
The struggles continue for NorthPort with its 1-5 win-loss record. The Batang Pier were defeated by the FiberXers, 111-92, last May 16.
In their previous game against Magnolia, the Batang Pier defeated the Hotshots, 113-110, in the quarterfinals. A repeat of that would definitely boost NorthPort’s campaign to reach the playoffs. However, there are no signs of Arvin Tolentino playing the game in Candon, based from social media posts.
Limit opponent’s scoring
Even without Tolentino, NorthPort showed that it can produce offensively. The problem is defensively, as the Batang Pier are giving up 116 points in the five defeats this conference.
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