The Barangay Ginebra and the Blackwater Bossing are both looking to return to their winning ways after stumbling over their last few games. Will the Barangay prevent another upset loss this Friday? Or, will the Blackwater end its slump and stun Ginebra at Philsports Arena?

Catch this game live on Friday,  April 12at 7:30 pm, Manila time.

Barangay Ginebra San Miguel (3-3)

Projected Starting Five:

  • Stanley Pringle
  • Maverick Ahanmisi
  • Jamie Malonzo
  • Christian Standhardinger
  • Japeth Aguilar

The Barangay is engulfed in turmoil, as they are on a two-game losing skid and have dropped three of their last four outings. The continued absence of former league MVP Scottie Thompson is not helping things for Ginebra, which is coming off a 91-85 loss to the Terrafirma DYIP last Sunday. Despite the best efforts of Ginebra’s Twin Tower combo of Christian Standhardinger and Japeth Aguilar, the Barangay still fell short of preventing an upset loss at the hands of Terrafirma. 

C-Stand had 21 points in that game, while Aguilar produced 18 points. Ginebra just wasn’t able to capitalize on its dominance in the possession battle, as they shot just 39 percent on 82 attempts from the field to 48 FG% by Terrafirma on 74 shots from the floor. Things could change for the better for Ginebra though this Friday against the Bossing, who have lost nine straight games to the Barangay dating back to 2019.

Advertisement

Blackwater Bossing (3-3)

Projected Starting Five:

  • Rey Nambatac
  • Tyrus Hill
  • Rey Suerte
  • Troy Rosario
  • Bradwyn Guinto

Like Ginebra, the Bossing are on a skid and looking to find their way out of a dark tunnel. Blackwater has dropped its last three outings, including last Saturday’s 110-103 loss to the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters. The Bossing have lost all the momentum they generated during their hot start to the conference when they defeated the Meralco Bolts, TNT Tropang Giga, and Converge FiberXers. At the same time, those wins serve as reminders of the potential of this Bossing squad.  While Converge seems to be going nowhere, Meralco and TNT have six victories between them. 

The trio of Troy Rosario, Rey Suerte, and Rey Nambatac is definitely a threat to Ginebra. Rosario is leading the Bossing with 15.7 points and 6.7 rebounds per game, while Suerte and Nambatac are averaging 13.5 and 12.0 points per game, respectively. Blackwater is also top five so far this season with 103.6 points allowed per 100 possessions. With the Barangay’s offense being capped by Thompson’s absence, the Blackwater’s defense has a chance to shine this Friday.

Picks

Spread: Blackwater Bossing (+7.5)

Over/Under: Over (186.0)

Advertisement