Bay Area is sticking with import Andrew Nicholson for Game 4 even after rolling his ankle late in their Game 3 loss against Ginebra.
The Dragons have the luxury of fielding their other import in Myles Powell who has been on standby after suffering a foot injury at the end of the eliminations but decided not to pull the trigger on the import change.
Bay Area actually had until 12 noon on Thursday, Jan. 5, to relegate Nicholson to the injured/reserve list and reactivate Powell but no one from their camp informed the PBA office any change as the deadline elapsed.
It’s still unclear how healthy the 6-foot-10 import is ahead of the pivotal clash on Friday, Jan. 6 but he is reportedly expected to play through the injury as he was cleared of any fracture on the left ankle.
Nicholson went down with an apparent ankle injury with only 31 seconds left in the contest after stepping on the foot of Ginebra forward Jamie Malonzo during a rebound play.
The NBA veteran who had been on a tear, averaging 31.5 points, 15.6 rebounds, 1.4 steals, and 1.2 blocks in the playoffs, had to be helped to the dugout and was put on a wheelchair on his way to the hospital after the game.
He finished with 23 points, 24 rebounds and two blocks but were not enough to prevent the Dragons from collapsing in front of a searing Ginebra run in the final frame.
Bay Area tries to level the series to two games apiece in Game 4 and avoid falling into a 3-1 hole.