Converge and Blackwater have their sights set on gaining a share of the lead in their respective groups as PBA Season 50 Governors’ Cup action continues later tonight at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila.
The FiberXers will be looking to join NLEX (3-0) atop Group A when they face the winless Macau at 5:15 p.m., before the Bossing try to add to Magnolia’s woes at 7:30 in a bid to keep in step with current Group B leader Phoenix (2-0).
Converge improved to 2-0 after a 105-103 win over Terrafirma last Wednesday, but Coach Delta Pineda would want to see better basketball from his men as they coughed up a 16-point lead and nearly lost in the final possession.
Fortunately for them, Maverick Ahanmisi missed his four as time expired, allowing the crew to gain some measure of payback after bowing to the Dyip in overtime, 111-100, during their Commissioner’s Cup encounter last March 14.
Now they’ll try to win more convincingly versus the 0-2 Giant Pandas, who, according to the Casino Plus sportsbook, are at a disadvantage.
The handicap is set at +11.5, with the over/under in total points scored between the two teams set at 206.5. Bets can be placed here: https://www.casinoplus.com.ph/home/inGame?name=Basketball&title=SportBet.
But also being eyed closely in this bout is Jalen Hudson, who has basically no choice but to perform the best he can to keep his job after the American reinforcement only had two points on 14 shots in the 26 minutes he played.
(C) PBA Images
Meanwhile, Blackwater will try to sustain its form after dealing Rain or Shine a 131-108 beatdown last Saturday for a swashbuckling start to the conference.
Setting aside all the trade rumors surrounding Sedrick Barefield and Christian David, Coach Pat Aquino and his charges showed that they’re all business as the crew submitted a balanced attack to blast the Elasto Painters.
In fact, the PBA Press Corps Player of the Week is from the Bossing, namely RK Ilagan, as he had 22 points, five rebounds, three assists, and two steals in a solid first game back since April 8, as he’s fully healthy from a knee injury.
A total of six players finished in twin digits in that outing, led by import Kentrell Barkley, who had a 29-15-10 stat line, and that should be challenging, to say the least, to handle for a Hotshots team that got off on the wrong foot in the tilt.
In that same gameday in Montalban, the squad of Coach LA Tenorio bowed to the Fuel Masters, 98-86, in which they blew an early 16-point lead and even fell behind by 15 during the payoff period in a massive 31-point turnaround.
Still, the Casino Plus sportsbook views Magnolia as the favorite. The handicap is set at -3.5, with the over/under in points scored at 198.0.
