The San Miguel Beermen and the NLEX Road Warriors will both look to get back in the win column when they square off in the City of Golden Friendship this weekend. Will the Beermen score their third win at the expense of NLEX? Or will the Road Warriors live up to their name and upset San Miguel?

Catch this game live on Saturday,  August 31 at 6:00 pm, Manila time.

San Miguel Beermen (2-1)

Projected Starting Five:

  • CJ Perez
  • Jericho Cruz
  • Jordan Adams
  • Marcio Lassiter
  • June Mar Fajardo

The Beermen hope that a provincial game will brighten up their prospect of winning again. After losing to the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel in Cubao last Tuesday, 108-102, San Miguel will look to get back on track this Saturday in Cagayan de Oro City. 

The loss to the Barangay wasted the 23-point output of San Miguel import Jordan Adams, though, he also had a minus-15. Junemar Fajardo, meanwhile, had 17 points and 17 rebounds. Fajardo is a constant for San Miguel. He will eat and he will get his numbers. A better commitment on defense by San Miguel after letting Barangay shoot 54.1 percent from the field will be one the Beermen need to thwart the attempt of NLEX to pull off an upset.

The Beermen, who defeated the Phoenix Fuel Masters (111-107) and Blackwater Bossing (128-108) before losing to Ginebra, are 4-1 straight up in their last five meetings with the Road Warriors.

Advertisement

NLEX Road Warriors (2-1)

Projected Starting Five:

  • Robert Bolick
  • Anthony Semerad
  • Robbie Herndon
  • Myke Henry
  • Michael Miranda

Just like San Miguel, the Road Warriors just suffered their first loss of the conference after falling prey to the red-hot Rain or Shine Elasto Painters last Wednesday, 124-105. Robert Bolick led NLEX with 22 points, but he took 19 shots to get there. Import Myke Henry provided 21 points on a much more efficient 9/14 shooting from the field. 

Bolick is always going to get plenty of touches, regardless of what conference it is, but perhaps the Road Warriors will be in a better position to win games if some of his shots go to Henry. Then again, Bolick can heat up and explode on any given night. It is also worth noting that Michael Miranda made two shots from behind the second arc against Rain or Shine. His range could prove to be a challenge to cover for Fajardo and the Beermen’s defense that will have to constantly worry about Bolick and Henry.

Picks

Spread: San Miguel (-8.5)

Over/Under: Over (213.5)

Advertisement