THREE teams at the bottom see action in Wednesday’s PBA 49th Season Commissioner’s Cup at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
The other squad, on the other hand, is also looking to continue its winning ways and keep moving up the ladder. Here is a preview:
TERRAFIRMA VS. BLACKWATER
When: Wednesday, January 16. 5 p.m.
Where: Ninoy Aquino Stadium
Battle of also-ran teams
Blackwater and Terrafirma square off on Wednesday in a battle of teams at the bottom of the standings. The Bossing are at 12th with a 1-7 win-loss slate, while the Dyip remain winless in nine outings.
Blackwater lost to Barangay Ginebra, 86-63, last Sunday, while Terrafirma was defeated by Magnolia, 89-84, last Friday.
Can Terrence Romeo show out in second game with Dyip?
Terrence Romeo played his first game with Terrafirma in their previous game against Magnolia, seeing action for 13 minutes. He finished with three points on 1-for-4 shooting from the field.
After his Dyip debut, Romeo said he is still looking for his rhythm. Will we now see his old deadly form against Blackwater?
Will Sedrick and RK finally play again?
Sedrick Barefield and RK Ilagan have been missing games due to injury, and their status remains in question as of posting time for the match-up against Terrafirma. The two have been sorely missed by Blackwater with Barefield averaging 20.75 points and Ilagan posting 7.0, but recently scored 19 in his most recent outing against TNT.
NLEX VS. TNT
When: Wednesday, January 16. 7:30 p.m.
Where: Ninoy Aquino Stadium
Aiming to extend win streak
TNT is on a hot streak heading into the match-up against NLEX. The Tropang Giga nipped Converge, 98-96, last Saturday to extend their winning streak to four games.
Chasing for top two spots
TNT is very much in the hunt for the top two spots in the quarterfinals with their 4-2 win-loss slate, and having the same winning percentage as third-running Eastern, Barangay Ginebra, and Meralco. A win will propel them to second place in the team standings if the winning percentage will be the basis.
Must-win for NLEX
NLEX is seeking to break out of a four-game losing streak, the last of which was a 105-91 defeat to Meralco.
The Road Warriors, however, are still on the bubble for a quarterfinals berth, as they share the ninth spot with Phoenix at 3-5.
Local support and limiting errors
NLEX dropped a 14-point defeat to Meralco after only two players in Robert Bolick and rookie Brandon Ramirez scored in double-figures, with import Mike Watkins as one of the few bright spots with 38 points and 21 rebounds. The Road Warriors also committed 23 turnovers, a conference-high for the squad.
Oftana’s shooting drops
Calvin Oftana made a key three late in TNT’s nail-biting victory over Converge, but it was a relatively quiet night for one of the candidates for Best Player of the Conference.
He totaled just two threes, his lowest since he went zero in the Tropang Giga's opener against Eastern. Oftana will be out to bounce back against NLEX in Wednesday’s contest.
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