Barangay Ginebra looks to keep itself within striking distance of the top two spots when it guns for a crucial victory against Blackwater in the 2022 PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Friday, Nov. 18.
The Gin Kings, lurking just outside the top two positions at fourth place with a 5-2 record, face up against the free falling Bossing in the second game of the double-header at 5:45 p.m. which will come after the fitting appetizer set at 3 p.m. with slumping teams NLEX and Terrafirma looking to arrest their slides.
Out to put pressure on the league leaders Converge and Bay Area – both tied for the second spot of the standings with identical 8-2 records – and Magnolia which has an 8-1 win-loss slate is Ginebra which will welcome Scottie Thompson and Japeth Aguilar back to the team after a splendid Gilas Pilipinas stint.
Thompson has all the momentum on his hands after drilling the game-winning triple in the Kings’ 97-96 victory over the San Miguel Beermen in their last game and an impressive showing on the international stage during the fifth window of the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers.
Manning the point for the national team, the 6-foot-1 guard scattered an all-around game of eight points, 13 rebounds and eight assists in Gilas’ 74-66 win against Jordan and a nine-point, nine-rebound and three-assist performance against Saudi Arabia which the national team also won, 76-63.
Aside from Thompson, another player motivated to show up for Ginebra’s legion of fans is Justin Brownlee who, just last Wednesday, Nov. 16, made a huge step to become a full pledge Filipino citizen when his naturalization passed its first reading in the House of Representatives.
Looking to contain both Brownlee and Thompson, however, are the Bossing who are determined to put a stop to their own four-game losing skid. They were close to ending the dry spell last time out when they just ran out of steam in their overtime loss against Meralco, 102-98.
Injuries to key players Troy Rosario, Jvee Casio and Baser Amer caused the recent decline for Blackwater which now fell to a 3-7 record and in danger of missing out on the playoffs. In order to avoid that, coach Ariel Vanguardia is looking at his import Cameron Krutwig to carry the cudgels while his local crew led by Rashawn McCarthy, Ato Ular, Mike Ayonayon and Gab Banal must also step up their respective games.