MERALCO has taken a 2-1 series lead in the 48th Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup finals after the Bolts hurdled the San Miguel Beermen, 93-89, in Game 3 on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Bolts can stretch their lead to 3-1 and move a win shy of the title if they get past the Beermen in Game 4 at 7:30 p.m. today.
Coach Luigi Trillo recognized that it will be tough battle in their coming game, and the Bolts are ready for it.
“The quicker this series gets, it favors us. So, we need to be good in our half-court game, and when this becomes a possession game,” added Trillo.
Game 3 saw its similarities in in Game 2, which was won by San Miguel, 95-94, with the encounter boiling down to execution down the stretch.
And Trillo feels that the Bolts will be able to handle whatever situation they get into.
“If they throw a zone, we’re ready for it. If they want a man-to-man, we’re ready for it. We see clearly what this game is about,” added Trillo.
The Bolts won Game 3 after Chris Newsome sank a three with 34.1 seconds.
“We won but we are not satisfied with the last three, four minutes. There were certain things as a group that we need to do and we didn’t do some of those,” said Trillo.