Two winless squads will go at it Friday afternoon at Ynares Arena in Pasig City, as the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel takes on the struggling Blackwater Bossing.
Catch this game live on July 23 at 3 pm, Manila time.
The Barangay Ginebra San Miguel (0-1)
Projected Starting Five:
- PG: LA Tenorio
- SG: Scottie Thompson
- SF: Stanley Pringle
- PF: Japeth Aguilar
- C: Christian Standhardinger
One of the early surprises in the 2021 PBA Philippine Cup was the 94-75 loss of the defending champion Ginebra to the NLEX Road Warriors last Sunday. It wasn’t just that the Barangay lost, but also the manner they were crushed by Yeng Guiao’s men that stunned observers.
But perhaps the Barangay can just charge that defeat to rust, after not having played competitive basketball for a while, unlike the Road Warriors who had already played a game before taking on Ginebra. With that said, the Barangay could be expected to play so much better this time around against Blackwater, especially center Christian Standhardinger, who didn’t have the stellar debut for Ginebra many thought he would have.
Standhardinger only had eight points and nine rebounds against NLEX. As a team, the Barangay shot just 34% from the floor and 15% from deep. Once they get it going, though, it’s hard not to imagine the Barangay having consistent success, and that could start this Friday against a winless Blackwater team that lost key players from last season.
The Blackwater Bossing (0-2)
Projected Starting Five:
- PG: Ed Daquioag
- SG: Simon Enciso
- SF: Russell Escoto
- PF: Marion Magat
- C: Kelly Nabong
The Bossing don’t look like they are in command of things this early in the 2021 NBA Philippine Cup. They dropped their first match, 103-77, to the Alaska Aces then got trounced once again when they took a 71-62 loss to the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters last Sunday.
Blackwater showed some more fight, though, in the ROS game and even cut a 20-point lead down to just nine with a little over two minutes in regulation, but their fightback simply was too little and too late. Surprisingly for Blackwater, it’s veteran big man Kelly Nabong who’s leading the way for them on offense. He raised his conference average to 12.0 points per game after scoring 18 against the Elasto Painters.
He’s also shooting 36% from downtown, which should be enough to keep Ginebra’s frontcourt honest in defending him. Simon Encisco, Baser Amer, Ed Daquioag, and Mike Tolomia are all part of a deep Blackwater backcourt, but chemistry appears to be an issue for the team. The Bossing turned the ball over 19 times while making just 15 assists against Rain or Shine.
PREDICTION:
Spread:
It’s hard to trust Blackwater, especially against a pre-conference favorite that is coming off a loss. Christian Standhardinger plays better and leads Ginebra to a double-digit win over the Bossing. Take the Barangay (-12.5) to cover.
Over/Under:
Ginebra will do its part in boosting the game’s offense, but Blackwater stumbles mightily against the Barangay’s defense. Take the Under (174.0).
