PH Patriots eye third win

AFTER back- to- back victories, the Airasia-philippine Patriots expressed confidence in beating newcomer Saigon Heat today in the 3rd Airasia ASEAN Basketball League (ABL) at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.

Patriots coach Glenn Capacio said that he is satisfied with his team’s performance, citing good ball rotation and razor-sharp precision as shown in their 86- 73, win over Indonesian Warriors last Saturday.

“We played much better than in our last game, especially on the defensive end,” said Capacio. “Offensively, we were able to move the ball well because team effort is the gist of our system.”

He hopes that the former champion Patriots would play much smarter and tougher when they face the Heat for the first time at 7 p. m. in the game presented by PG Plex Linoleum.

The Heat is one of the three expansion teams in the tournament (the others are the San Miguel Beermen and the Bangkok Cobras). Their only defeat so far was at the hands of the Beermen, 70-78, last week. The loss brought doubt on their ability to regain the title they’ve won in 2009 against the Indonesia Warriors.

“It was a confidence-building win and I hope it could be the start of something good for the team. But they should not take the Heat for granted.” said team co-owner Mikee Romero.

Import Anthony Johnson is expected to lead the Patriots along with fellow import Nakiea Miller.

Capacio and Romero are likely to lean on the support of Al Vergara, Ardy Larong, Angel Raymundo and veteran Rob Wainwright.

Former NBA player Julius Hodge, who fired a league-record 42 points in a loss to the Westports Malaysia Dragons, will lead the winless Heat.