The showdown between the Barangay Ginebra and the TNT Tropang Giga this Friday will have all the feels of a championship game, as each team aims to take a solo lead in the standings.

Catch this game live on November 6 at 6:45 pm, Manila time.

The Barangay Ginebra San Miguel  (6-2)

The Barangay Ginebra took the NorthPort Batang Pier to the woodshed Wednesday night to notch their second win in a row. It seems that Ginebra is now back in top form after a recent two-game slump that saw the Baranggay lose to the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters and the Alaska Aces.

Tim Cone loved what he saw from Ginebra’s offense in the NorthPort game, as his team finished with 37 assists. The playmaking of Scottie Thompson and LA Tenorio gives the Barangay stability, as the two constantly make everyone involved. Thompson and Tenorio combined for 15 assists in the win over the Batang Pier.

Ginebra also shot 54 FG% against NorthPort, and it’s hoping to carry over that hot shooting into the showdown with the Tropang Giga, who’s allowed opponents to average 99.3 points on 48.2 FG%.

Stanley Pringle is pacing the Barangay with 19.6 points per game, while Japeth Aguilar is averaging 13.0 points and 6.5 rebounds.

The TNT Tropang Giga  (6-2)

Unlike Ginebra, the Tropang Giga did not have a great Wednesday, as they lost to the Magnolia Hotshots, 102-92.  TNT was a 4.5-point favorite heading into that game, but offensive struggles and inability to keep up with the speedy lineup configurations of Magnolia resulted in an upset loss for the Tropang Giga.

RR Pogoy struggled mightily from the field against Magnolia, as he went just 3-for-14 for seven points. Troy Rosario was also a non-factor with his six points on 2-of-11 shooting. Even with Bobby Ray Parks Jr. and Jayson Castro scoring 29 and 25 points, respectively, the Tropang Giga couldn’t pull off the win. Pogoy and Rosario will be looking to put up a much better effort against Ginebra, which the Tropang Giga have defeated in four of five meetings, dating back to the 2019 Commissioner’s Cup.

The key for the Tropang Giga this Friday is to stop Ginebra’s guards and dictate the game’s pace. TNT got blitzed by Magnolia’s three-guard lineup of Jio Jalalon, Chris Banchero, and Paul Lee in the Magnolia game. They can start by winning the rebounding battle. After all, TNT is tops in the PBA this conference with 47.5 rebounds per game.

PREDICTION:

The Tropang Giga are built to win it all. They are too good of a team to lose two games in a row. Expect Pogoy to go full Pogdanovic against Ginebra, as he bounces back with one of his strongest performances this conference. TNT wins this game, 102-98.