ALREADY assured of a quarterfinals slot, Converge adjusts its sights a little higher but should be braced enough for what may be a big Blackwater surprise Sunday in the PBA Commissioner's Cup at the Ynares Center in Antipolo.
A second straight win by the FiberXers would jack their record to 8-3 and move them tantalizingly close to securing a top two spot and its win-once advantage over a lower-ranked team in the next round.
A victory over Blackwater and also against San Miguel Beer on Friday should clinch it for Converge, main reason acting head coach Franco Atienza urges his team to continue exerting the necessary effort.
"If we want to finish strong we have to take care of our last two games, starting with Blackwater. Magiging balewala 'yung mga trinabaho namin in our seven wins if we won't close it out strong," said Atienza.
"Gusto rin namin na magkaroon ng good rhythm going to the playoffs," added Atienza. "So hopefully makalusot kami sa Blackwater then saka na namin iisipin San Miguel."
Sponsored content:
For their part, the Bossing are simply hoping to forge a tie for the eighth and last quarterfinals spot should they improve their current 2-7 record.
To boost its chances, Blackwater is reportedly ready to re-activate Sedrick Barefield and RK Ilagan.
Ilagan has been sidelined the last three games due to a leg injury while plantar fasciitis has sidelined Barefield the last four games. In the four games he has seen action in, the former No. 2 overall pick averaged 20.75 points along with 4.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists.
That should come as welcome news for Bossing import George King, who leads the league in scoring, but has gotten little help from his teammates.
In a rare instance when the likes of Justin Chua, Mike Ayonayon and Jaydee Tungcab did provide King ample support, Blackwater came out a 96-86 winner over Terrafirma last Wednesday.
Sponsored content:
King remains Atienza's main concern. "Scoring machine, eh," he explained, while pointing out that the 31-year-old sharpshooter should also negate his team's height advantage.
"We recognize na medyo mas may ceiling kami. Pero on the other hand, mahihirapan din kaming mag-matchup sa import nila kasi guwardiya, eh. Wala naman kaming pang-matchup doon. Unless big man ang kukuha, then advantage naman niya kasi mas mabilis," said Atienza.
"So 'yung masasaktan namin sila sa ilalim, kailangan din namin silang intindihin sa pag-matchup kay George King. Iba import na iyon. Nag-a-average ng seven attempts sa four-point line and he usually makes two. Paano kung maganda gising maka-shoot ng limang four points?," Atienza also said.
"So... we'll approach it the way we approached every other game. We will prepare hard, we will be ready to compete and try to get that win. "Kailangan talagang paghandaang mabuti ang Blackwater." (NC)
