ANGELES CITY – Ian Sangalang sat out the opening half of Magnolia’s PBA Philippine Cup game against Meralco, raising speculations on an injury plaguing the Hotshots’ main threat in the middle.
The 28-year-old native of Lubao,Pampanga joined forward Rome Dela Rosa on the bench as the Hotshots ended up tied at 46 with the Bolts at halftime of the game at the Smart 5G-powered Angeles University Foundation gym.
Sangalang sat out the game with a back pain, while Dela Rosa is out with a hyperextended knee. Both are listed as day-to-day.
Unlike Sangalang, Dela Rosa hurt his knee in Magnolia’s 81-87 loss to the Alaska Aces last Saturday.
Dela Rosa didn’t finish the game when he left early in the fourth period. He finished with seven points on 3-of-6 shooting from the field.
But Sangalang was good enough to play for the Hotshots until the endgame, capping the night with eight points and seven rebounds, but struggled from the floor on 4-of-11 shooting.
Sangalang is averaging 8.5 points and 8.5 rebounds in the two games he played so far in the bubble.
The Hotshots fell to a 1-3 record following the overtime loss to the Bolts.
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