Game today (Batangas City Sports Arena)
7 p.m. - Batangas City vs Zamboanga
It all comes down to one game with either Batangas City or Zamboanga moving on to the championship round of the southern division of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) Datu Cup.
Both teams slug it out starting 7 p.m. at the Batangas City Sports Arena.
The winner will earn the right to face the Davao Occidental Tigers, who swept the Bacoor Strikers in the semifinal round.
For the Tanduay-backed Athletics, securing a win at home will put them in a better position to win back-to-back titles. Expect their local folks to come in full force, especially after the team went through.
Batangas City management had to fight for its rights of reclaiming the home court advantage when a last-minute change in schedule was made by operations head Zaldy Realubit.
But the Athletics got the home court advantage nonetheless upon the intercession of Commissioner Duremdes and the approval of Senator Manny Pacquiao. The home fans will play a big role in their game against the Family’s Brand Sardines-supported squad, which had given the inaugural staging champion a hard time in the first two games of the best-of-three series.
“The home court advantage is sacred to us,” said team manager Gerry Tee. “It’s so important. At one time, our venue was not available due to a pageant contest, so we looked for an alternative home court here in Batangas to make sure that we will have the support of our local folks.”
Head coach Mac Tan said the home court advantage will become the driving force of his banged-up players who are playing in pain, but willing to take the sacrifice just to give the team the extra push.
For Zamboanga, it’s a good time for the squad to seize the moment.
After a roller-coaster ride in the early goings of the tournament, the team made a good impression after stunning last season’s runner-up Muntinlupa and pushed the Rajah Cup champions Athletics to the limit in the ongoing semifinals series.
But Zamboanga will need more than just productive games from top guns Reed Juntilla and Robin Roño and the hardworking Harold Arboleda to get the job done. They will need a more consistent game from Joseph Nalos, veteran Ryan Buenafe and big man Allan Santos as well as Ivan Villanueva, who had his string of good games, but hardly a factor last time around.