Barangay Ginebra looks for its second-straight win against the lowly Blackwater Bossing. Will the Gin Kings get upset again?

Catch the game this Thursday, August 30th, at 7:30 PM.

Barangay Ginebra San Miguel (1-1)

Starting five:

  • Scottie Thompson
  • Maverick Ahanmisi
  • Stephen Holt
  • Justin Brownlee
  • Japeth Aguilar

After an embarrassing conference-opener this past Saturday, where they lost, 74-63, and shot a woeful 27.9%, Ginebra bounced back by beating sister team and rival San Miguel Beermen on Tuesday, 108-102.

Justin Brownlee played hero as he always does as he was simply sensational, dropping 51 points on 18-of-29 shooting. What’s better is he also did well in other departments, grabbing 13 rebounds, dishing out five assists, and also collecting six steals. He’s in good shape to provide a good follow-up this Friday.

Though Jamie Malonzo is still out with an injury, the team is still loaded on talented locals. Veteran big man Japeth Aguilar, for one, had 21 points and made eight of 10 shots. Rookie RJ Abarrientos, meanwhile, redeemed himself from a horrendous 1-of-15 shooting debut as he provided a serviceable 13 points and three assists Tuesday. Stephen Holt, Maverick Ahanmisi and 2021-22 PBA MVP Scottie Thompson are both off to a slow start, but they should be able to get some rhythm soon.

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Blackwater Bossing (1-0)

Starting five:

  • Sedrick Barefield
  • Bradwyn Guinto
  • James Kwekuteye
  • George King
  • Troy Rosario

Blackwater played All-Filipino this past Sunday after letting Ricky Ledo go, who shot 6-of-38 across two games – yes, you read that right, he missed 32 of his 38 attempts. As such, they bowed to the mighty Beermen, 128-108.

George King will be replacing Ledo. King was a standout at Colorado University and saw some action in the NBA. He stands at 6’6 and could be a force if they execute well enough.

In any case, the team actually have a good bunch of locals with 2024 second-overall pick Sedrick Barefield, second-year guard James Kwekuteye, veteran big man Troy Rosario, and other sizable bigs Justin Chua and Christian David. All can provide well if given a chance. Rosario led the way when they played without an import vs. SMB with 25 points, while David had a 17 and 10 double-double in the game before that.

PICKS:

Spread: Ginebra (-9.5)

Over/Under: Under (200)

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