TNT and Rain or Shine have their sights set on moving halfway through conquering their respective series as the PBA Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup race-to-4 semifinals continue later at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.
Action tips off at 5:15 p.m., with the Elasto Painters hoping to repeat against Barangay Ginebra after gutting out a 115-111 decision back in Game 1 at the Ynares Center in Antipolo, in front of 10,412 fans in attendance.
It was a solid display of character from Coach Yeng Guiao’s men, as they fought back from 10 down early in the fourth and finished the match with a 13-2 run behind clutch conversions from Jhonard Clarito and the usual suspects.
And they did all that despite missing Caelan Tiongson (illness) and Luis Villegas, who’s reportedly out for the series due to a hamstring injury.
That’s surely a tough blow for this Rain or Shine squad that’s been meaning to get over the hump, and the Kings are definitely hoping to take advantage of whatever opening it could offer in an aim to tie things up.
And even though they lost the last time out, the crowd darlings showed in that same game their signature NSD spirit, as they bucked a tepid start with a strong second-quarter showing that set up a tight affair all the way to the very end.
(C) PBA Images
That, perhaps, is the reason why they’re still a favorite in the bout later, based on the Casino Plus sportsbook, as they’re seen to win by -1.5 points, as of 2:30 p.m.
Also favored in the other semis bracket are the Tropang 5G, with the defending champions expected to come out triumphant by -2.5 points.
The over/under for the TNT-Meralco game is set at 193.5, while it is set at 204.5 for the Ginebra-Rain or Shine tilt.
It’s actually been a trend of sorts for Coach Chot Reyes and his men since the quarterfinals, where they ousted the twice-to-beat NLEX, and that may not be changing anytime soon after following it up with a gritty 94-89 Game 1 win.
There, the locals continued to shine, with Jordan Heading coming alive with 16 points as the defense drew on Calvin Oftana, although he still had 14.
But what stood out the most in that meeting was Bol Bol–not because of his 37 points and 11 rebounds but due to the eight assists he finished with, which is the most he’s had this conference as he’s starting to understand his team better.
Yet it’s no reason for Reyes to be confident, as they’re still wary of their sister team’s abilities, particularly import Marvin Jones, who led Meralco’s charge.
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