A gigantic battle of the top two teams is set as league-leader TNT and second-running NLEX cross paths in the resumption of the 2019 Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup.
The Tropang Texters (7-0) shoot for their eighth straight win, while the Road Warriors (5-1) look to tighten their hold on the No. 2 seed when they tango at 7 p.m. at the Smart Araneta Coliseum today.
Preceding that is another highly important tiff between Columbian (3-4) and Phoenix (2-5) at 4:30 p.m.
Already in the quarterfinals, TNT looks to solidify its place at the top and move closer to securing a top two finish for a twice-to-beat incentive in the next round.
“The immediate goal for us is to finish in the top two. We’re still not there yet, so we have to keep piling up wins,” said TNT coach Bong Ravena.
The Road Warriors can move closer to a berth in the quarterfinals with a win.
In the lower echelon where the Dyip and Fuel Masters are in at the moment, every win is critical in the race for the top eight.
The inconsistent Dyip aim to move to sixth place, while Phoenix hopes to enter the circle.
To do that, the Fuel Masters replaced long-time import Eugene Phelps with NBA veteran Alonzo Gee.
Gee will make his debut for Phoenix in hopes of flipping the team’s fortunes.
In another trade, Meralco acquired forwards Allein Maliksi and Raymar Jose from Blackwater in exchange for veteran Nino Canaleta, guard Mike Tolomia and a future second-round pick.
This deal comes after the Elite traded Mike DiGregorio to TNT for Brian Heruela just several days ago.