By REYNALD MAGALLON
TNT and Rain or Shine hope to open a new chapter to their rivalry but first they need to dispatch their respective quarterfinals foe in the PBA Season 50 Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Saturday, Dec. 27.
Both boasting twice-to-beat armors, the Elasto Painters and the Tropang 5G are only needing one win to book a fourth-straight semis meeting.
But standing in their way are Meralco and Magnolia, which are looking to stay alive in the all-Filipino conference with a victory.
Raising the curtain to the exciting twin bill is the match between the Elasto Painters and the Bolts at 5:15 p.m. and will be immediately followed by the clash between the Tropang 5G and the Hotshots in the second game at 7:30 p.m.
Rain or Shine, which finished third in the standings with an 8-3 record, will also get a huge boost especially on the frontcourt with Luis Villegas making his long-awaited comeback after a series of injuries.
“He makes up for the size we lost with the injury to Keith. He’s also a natural leader who commands respect from the team,” said Guiao.
No doubt ROS is coming in as a favorite especially with Adrian Nocum, Gian Mamuyac, Leonard Santillan, Caelan Tiongson and Andrei Caracut all leading the charge along with the veteran presence of Stanley Pringle, Gabe Norwood and Beau Belga.
But the Bolts aren’t pushovers either, especially since the core of the championship team that won the title two seasons ago are still with the team. Chris Newsome, Chris Banchero and Cliff Hodge will be at the forefront of the attack for the Bolts.
Meanwhile, the Tropang 5G are aiming to reassert their mastery over the Hotshots who they beat just a few days ago to seal the twice-to-beat advantage.
TNT defeated Magnolia, 94-83, to also spoil the season debut of playing coach LA Tenorio.
Surely raring to avenge that loss are the Hotshots who will be leaning on their young guns in Zav Lucero and Jerom Lastimosa along with veterans Mark Barroca and Ian Sangalang to pick up the slack in the absence of Paul Lee.
But the Tropang 5G have plenty of weapons in Rey Nambatac, Jordan Heading, RR Pogoy, Calvin Oftana, Kelly Williams and Poy Erram, who is fresh off a gold medal win in the Southeast Asian Games.
