MAGNOLIA Chicken Timplados will try to step even closer to a quarterfinal berth when it faces Blackwater on Wednesday in the 2023-24 PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Philsports Arena.
The Hotshots face the Bossing in their 8 p.m. clash.
Magnolia will be searching for its sixth win that, as seen in past conferences, has traditionally been enough for a team to clinch a quarterfinal berth. It will also look to equal its most recent best start of 6-0 during the 2021 Governors’ Cup.
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The Hotshots were 5-0 to begin last season’s Commissioner’s Cup where they eventually placed second at the end of the eliminations before losing to eventual champion Ginebra in a semifinal series.
Magnolia is fresh from its 99-72 win over NLEX last Friday in which the top scoring team prior to the game was limited to its lowest scoring output in 10 conferences, according to PBA chief statistician Fidel Mangonon.
“We have a deep rotation so we can use 11 to 12 players. ‘Yun ang maganda sa amin. Even the third group, nakakatulong sa amin,” said Magnolia coach Chito Victolero.
Blackwater, meanwhile, is trying to arrest its five-game losing streak, with its last victory coming during its opening game when it defeated Converge, 103-84, last November 8. The Bossing lost to Rain or Shine, 115-110, last Saturday.
The Bossing haven’t won over the Hotshots since their March 9, 2022 game where they ended a PBA-record 29-game losing streak with a 101-100 victory in the 2021 Governors’ Cup.
NorthPort eyes back-to-back
In the first game, NorthPort goes for its second straight win in a game against Converge at 4 p.m.
The Batang Pier are coming off a rousing victory last Friday when they defeated TNT in overtime, 128-123, ending their seven-game losing skid against the Tropang Giga.
At 3-2, NorthPort seeks to narrow the gap between it and the top teams led by unbeaten Magnolia and Phoenix, which is in solo second place with a 5-1 win-loss record.
In a bid to salvage its conference, Converge is scheduled to deploy new import Jamil Wilson after finally replacing Tom Vodanovich following a 0-5 start.
Converge has also activated JL Delos Santos as a replacement for Mark Tallo, after the former signed a two-year deal at the end of his collegiate career with Jose Rizal University.
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