The Meralco Bolts and the TNT Tropang Giga have a huge game coming up this Thursday. This is a showdown between the top two teams in Group A. Plus, the Bolts are out for revenge, as their lone loss so far in the conference came at the hands of their sister ball club, TNT.

Catch this game live on Thursday,  September 12 at 5:00 pm, Manila time.

Meralco Bolts (5-1)

Projected Starting Five:

  • Chris Banchero
  • Chris Newsome
  • Kier Quinto
  • Allen Durham
  • Brandon Bates

The Bolts just keep on collecting wins. They are back in Manila after extending their win streak to four games with a thrilling 82-74 win over the import-less Magnolia Chicken Timplados in Panado last Saturday. Four players scored in double figures for the Bolts in the Magnolia game, as they were led by Chris Newsome’s 21 points. 

Allen Durham only had 15 points but he grabbed  15 boards, while Kier Quinto and Chris Banchero racked up 16 and 10 points, respectively. Durham will always be a big key for the Bolts, and especially in this rematch against TNT. When the two teams first met on August 22, Durham only had eight points on 3/9 shooting in a 93-73 loss. He has improved since and will look to be more aggressive on offense after taking 20 shots against the Chicken Timplados.

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TNT Tropang Giga (5-1)

Projected Starting Five:

  • Jayson Castro
  • RR Pogoy
  • Calvin Oftana
  • Glenn Khobuntin
  • Rondae Hollis-Jefferson

Jayson Castron can still get things done. The former Best Point Guard in Asia delivered when it mattered the most for TNT last Sunday, as he made a crucial basket to help the Tropang Giga stave off the Converge FiberXers in a 98-91 win. Castro finished with 14 points and nine rebounds while Rondae Hollis-Jefferson made 21 points, albeit in 21 attempts from the field.

That said, TNT has shown the ability to win games despite inefficient shooting numbers, thanks to its stout defense. One example is no other than its August win over Meralco where the Tropang Giga shot just 40 percent from the field but still won by 20 points. TNT forced the Bolts to commit 17 turnovers in that contest and converted those miscues into 10 points. The Tropang Giga have also allowed just 87.3 points in their last three outings.

Picks

Spread: Meralco (+1.5)

Over/Under: Under (190.5)

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