Phoenix and Blackwater in all-important game today
THE Phoenix Fuel Masters and Blackwater Elite, two teams that had a promising start in the ongoing PBA Philippine Cup, battle in an all- important game today at the Smart Araneta Coliseum whose result could well determine if they advance to the next round of the competition or not.
Set for 7 p. m., the Fuel Masters ( 4- 5) and Elite ( 4- 6) shoot for the key win in their main game encounter to boost their chances of booking a place in the quarterfinals of the seasonopening tournament of the Philippine Basketball Association ( PBA) even if they could well end up in seventh or eighth place and having to overcome a twice- to-win disadvantage in the quarters.
Phoenix, which won two of its first three games in the tournament, is coming off a loss its last game against the Meralco Bolts, 92- 90, a match that could have helped it a lot had it come away with a victory.
While they fought resilient against the Bolts to pad their cause, the Fuel Masters just could not complete the task in the end as Meralco hung on tight to claim the win.
Veteran Willy Wilson led Phoenix with 24 points while sophomore Matthew Wright added 16 points before fouling out in the loss.
Despite falling short last time around, Fuel Masters coach Louie Alas is still bullish of their chances of advancing to the quarterfinals, saying their “fate is still in their hands.”
“We’re still in contention for a quarterfinal spot despite the loss [to Meralco]. The good thing about this is that our fate is still in our hands. The top six may be out of our reach at this point but we intend to see our goal of reaching the quarterfinals through,” said Mr. Alas.
Unfortunately for Phoenix it has to play today’s game sans Mr. Wright, who is with Gilas Pilipinas as it takes on Australia in a FIBA World Cup Qualifier away match on Thursday.
LOSE AND OUT
For its part, Blackwater is in a more precarious situation heading into today’s game as a loss translates to automatic exit.
Playing their last game in their elimination assignment, the Elite, who also won two of their first three games before hitting a major road block midway into the tournament, are in a must-win situation after dropping their previous game against the NLEX Road Warriors, 93-90, that pushed them on the brink of elimination.
Blackwater was pretty much in control of the contest against NLEX until the latter made a furious run in the payoff quarter to propel itself to the victory and deal a huge blow to the Elite’s playoff hopes.
Michael DiGregorio led Blackwater with 16 points with JP Erram adding 14 and Allein Maliksi 13.
Like Phoenix, Blackwater will be playing with one less key stalwart as Mr. Maliksi is also with Gilas Pilipinas.
Meanwhile, playing in the opener at 4:30 p.m. are the GlobalPort Batang Pier (4-5) and Kia Picanto (1-8).
The Batang Pier is gunning for win number five in their penultimate elimination round assignment that would allow them to remain in the hunt for a spot in the quarterfinals.
Kia, for its part, is already eliminated in the race and is out to have a better finish in the tournament.