COACH Yeng Guiao is sticking to what works for him and Rain or Shine will be playing its usual game, while noting that it’s San Miguel that can be expected to pull off some surprise plays when the Painters and Beermen begin their PBA Philippine Cup semifinals showdown on Tuesday night at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The E-Painters are known for their up-tempo style and outside shooting – and that’s what the Beermen can expect as usual.
SMB coach Leo Austria even admitted earlier they have been preparing for the Painters long before ROS advanced to the Final Four.
“I’m sure they (Beermen) looked at the tapes and scouted our team,” Guiao said. “But basically there’s nothing to scout because we’re just playing our natural game.”
The veteran mentor says it’s SMB that has been tougher to scout.
The Beermen have been hard at practice since making the semifinals outright, while the Painters had to go through the two-phase quarterfinals, against Blackwater and Talk ‘N Text.
While relying heavily on June Mar Fajardo, Guiao feels the Beermen could turn more to their role players to keep the reigning MVP fresh throughout the rest of the playoffs – and counter the Painters’ deep rotation.
“I’m not really sure how they will cope; maybe they’ll use a lot more of their bench so that they can have fresher legs,” Guiao said. “But aside from that, I’m not really sure what they will do.”
One thing’s for sure: expect a dogfight in the opener of the best-of-seven series that’s tipping off at 7 p.m.