ON A MISSION
COACH Ritchie Ticzon maintains only one man from Barangay Ginebra beat his GlobalPort team the first time they met.
“Mark Caguioa,” said Ticzon.
Whether the Batang Pier would be struck by the Caguioa lightning anew would be known in their PLDT myDSL PBA Philippine Cup rematch Friday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Gametime is at 5:45 p.m.
The Kings are looking to formalize their elimination round finish as the top team, something that has not happened since the 2006-07 edition of the same tournament.
Ginebra actually has another shot on Sunday, when it winds up the 14-game eliminations against defending champion Talk N Text, but coach Ato Agustin understandably wants his charges to get the job done now.
“Hindi kami pwedeng magrelax bukas at tumingin na lang sa Talk N Text game,” said Agustin. “Kailangan laban lagi para makakuha ng momentum for the next round.”
For its part, a win is a must for GlobalPort for it to finish the eliminations in the middle of the pack and be on an equal footing with its opponent in the best-of-three quarterfinals.
A loss could spell a finish in the bottom two of the eight teams advancing to the last eight and its twice-to-win handicap.
That’s why Ticzon wants his players to bring the same game they displayed so well against Alaska for them to avenge a 104-109 defeat to Ginebra last Nov. 28.
“In most of our games we were able to compete but we become inconsistent in the latter part of the game. Whether it is in the third quarter or the endgame we falter,” said Ticzon following a 91-88 overtime win over Alaska last Sunday.
“It was the case with Ginebra in their first meeting, but mainly because of Caguioa.
The man nicknamed “The Spark” scored 29 points, including 14 of Ginebra’s last 18 points after GlobalPort had taken a 93-91 lead, in the process outduelling Terrence Romeo, who wound up with 27 markers.
What adds on to Ticzon’s concerns is the absence of Jay Washington, out for the rest of the tournament due to a partial muscle tear on his foot.
Also, Ginebra is coming off a 90-83 victory over tough Barako Bull also last Sunday that primed the Kings up for Friday’s match.
Ticzon remains unfazed. ““Laban lang kami, compete,” he stated. (NC)
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