Two teams on a tailspin will look to end their slump when the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters and the Meralco kick off Wednesday’s doubleheader at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Catch this game live on Wednesday, July 6 at 3 pm, Manila time.
The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters (1-5)
Projected Starting Five:
- PG: Rey Nambatac
- SG: Gabe Norwood
- SF: Mike Nieto
- PF: Leonard Santillan
- C: Beau Belga
The Elasto Painter still couldn’t stop their skid, as they absorbed a 99-93 loss to the San Miguel Beermen on June 29. With that, Rain or Shine is now on a five-game losing streak, with its only win this season so far coming from a 79-77 victory in its conference-opener matchup against the Converge FiberXers. The Elasto Painters had zero answers inside for Junemar Fajardo, who scored just 10 points but had 16 rebounds and even 7 assists.
Fajardo’s presence was a black hole for Rain or Shine, but the Elasto Painters at least wouldn’t have to deal with that kind of beast in their upcoming game against Raymond Almazan. Jewel Ponferada, Leonard Santillan, Norbert Torres, and Beau Belga should do a much more admirable job of corralling rebounds and preventing easy shots in the paint opposite someone like Raymond Almazan.
It’s also good news for Rain or Shine that Rey Nambatac is starting to be himself again, as the former Letran Knights bucket-getter is averaging 16.3 points in the last three games after scoring just a total of 12 points in his first three outings this conference.
The Meralco Bolts (3-3)
Projected Starting Five:
- PG: Aaron Black
- SG: Chris Newsome
- SF: Allein Maliksi
- PF: Cliff Hodge
- C: Raymond Almazan
The Bolts aren’t exactly doing a fine job of late either. They have lost three of their last four games, including their 90-89 setback at the hands of the surprisingly good Blackwater Bossing on June 30. Prior to that, the Bolts got blasted by the NLEX Road Warriors in a 90-75 loss.
Aaron Black will look to recover from an atrocious performance in the Blackwater game where he flubbed all nine shots from the floor and finished the night with zero points. He has churned out subpar showings in the last couple of Meralco games, but there’s hope for him to end his slump against Rain or Shine’s faulty defense that’s among the worst in the league. (Rain or Shine is fourth-worst overall this conference with a 103.1 offensive rating.)
And even with all the aforementioned big bodies on the Elasto Painters’ lineup, Rain or Shine is still last in the league with a 42.9 TRB%. That gives lots of hope for Meralco to get more scoring opportunities.
PREDICTION:
Spread: Meralco (-3.5) covers.
Over/Under: The Under (172.0) hits.
