#PBA2015 GOVS CUP PREVIEW: PUREFOODS STAR HOTSHOTS vs RAIN OR SHINE ELASTO-PAINTERS – MELEE IN THE MIDDLE
PUR & ROS are mired in the middle of the team standings, with PUR carrying a 3-4 card and ROS sporting a 4-4 slate. Both teams are right smack in the middle of the standings and both will need this crucial win if they are to penetrate the top half of the league table.
After 4 straight losses, PUR seems to have finally rediscovered its bearing, putting together back-to-back wins against KIA and GIN. It will take a lot more for the Hotshots to be a threat this conference, but winning a third straight game should give them much-needed momentum heading into important matches against TNT and BAR.
The Painters, meanwhile, have strung together a nice 3-game winning run after going 1-4 to start the Govs Cup. They’ve won their last three matches by an average of 19 points, and they look really sharp. PUR will be a tough test for ROS, but the Painters will surely relish at beating their rival from the 2014 PBA Govs’ Cup Finals.
Previous results:
PHL Cup
ROS beat PUR, 83-74
COMM Cup
ROS beat PUR, 78-71
- DOMINANT DEVANCE
Joe Devance has been okay this conference, but he was extra awesome in PUR’s last game, putting up a season-high 26 points as the Hotshots beat GIN. Devance hit 2 triples and hit 9/15 FGs. He was all-around awesome, and if he plays well againSaturday, ROS will be in trouble.
First 6 games: 7.7ppg, 2.8rpg, 42.5 FG%, 27.8 3pt%
vs GIN: 26pts, 8rebs, 9/15 FGs, 2/4 3pts
- BLAKELY’S BRILLIANCE
Import Marqus Blakely also did really well in PUR’s last game, putting up a nifty 19-19 double-double. One caveat though is he shot poorly from the field and from the line. Against ROS, he will need to be on-point and more efficient.
vs GIN: 19pts, 19rebs, 3asts, 2stls, 2blks, 7 TOs, 6/16 FGs, 7/13 FTs
Stats: 23.0ppg, 14.3rpg, 3.3apg, 2.6spg, 2.4bpg, 5.1 TOps, 58.1 FG%, 58.9 FT%
- THE STAR PRINCE
Mark Barroca, the Star Prince, also impressed against GIN, putting up 12 points and 5 boards as he outplayed Sol Mercado and LA Tenorio. He will be up against the Leethal Weapon here, though, so he will certainly need to bring his A-game.
vs GIN: 12pts, 5rebs, 2asts, 45.5 FG%
Stats: 10.0ppg, 4.3rpg, 2.4apg, 1.1spg, 40.9 FG%
- ERROR-PRONE
One weakness of PUR in that last game against GIN was turnovers. PUR turned the ball over 23 times compared to just 14 for GIN. The Hotshots are currently 2nd worst in terms of turnovers, so that is something they will need to address in this game.
vs GIN: 23 turnovers
Blakely – 7
Barroca – 4
Yap – 3
Pingris – 3
Average: 18.0 TOs per game (11th)
- WENDELL MAKINIS
ROS import Wendell McKines put up one of his best games against NLX. He was doing practically everything for ROS and he terribly outplayed Kwame Alexander. He put up a smooth (makinis) stat-line in that game and ROS will look for the same against PUR.
vs NLX: 33pts, 20rebs, 2asts, 1stl, 2blks, 11/16 FGs, 9/11 FTs, 2/2 3pts
- LEETHAL DOSE
Paul Lee also did well in that game, dropping 20 points in a nice bounce back effort after he scored 0 points against TNT. Lee struggled from the field, but he was near-perfect from the line and had 4 assists to compensate.
vs NLX: 20pts, 4rebs, 4asts, 3 triples, 7/8 FTs.
- SHARE THE BALL
One great thing ROS did in their win over NLX was to share the basketball. ROS is the 2nd best assists team in the league and they showed why against NLX, recording 24 assists. That teamwork will be important if they want to beat PUR here.
ROS: 21.0apg (2nd overall)
vs NLX: 24 asts
Lee – 4
Tang – 3
Tiu – 3
Norwood – 3
Quinahan – 3
- KEY MATCH-UP: JAMES YAP VS JEFF CHAN
One key match-up here is between Bacolod snipers James Yap and Jeff Chan. These are two of the best shooters in the country, and it’s always a treat to see them square off against each other. So far Yap has been the better shooter this conference, but one can never count out Chan, who has been Gilas Pilipinas’s #1 sniper ever since 2013. Whoever breaks out here and hits those long toms will give his club a huge lift.
Yap stats: 11.0ppg, 3.4rpg, 1.6 triples per game, 36.7 3pt%, 35.9 FG%
Chan stats: 7.5ppg, 4.0rpg, 2.3apg, 0.5 triples per game, 11.1 3pt%, 26.3 FG%
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