RETURN ENGAGEMENT Yeng Guiao won’t look back at their recent Philippine Cup Final Four showdown versus Petron Blaze (now San Miguel Beer). It seems like a distant past for the Rain or Shine bench chieftain. “Parang matagal na panahon na yon kung titignan mo sila ngayon. Their roster has improved again – lalong tumibay,” said Guiao at the San Miguel squad which they face once again Wednesday in the elimination round of the PLDT Home TVolution PBA Commissioner’s Cup. The lone match is set at 8 p.m. at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. “San Miguel is one of the teams to beat this conference. We were very lucky to get past by them in the all-Filipino semis,” said Guiao. “I’m sure they are aching to get back at us with an even stronger lineup. We need to play at the highest level all game long to stay with them,” Guiao added. San Miguel Beer shares third spot with Meralco at 2-1 while Rain or Shine is half a game behind at 1-1. The last time they met, the Elasto Painters crushed the Boosters, 97-88, to complete a dominant 4-1 win in their Philippine Cup best-of-seven semifinal confrontation. San Miguel, however, has since re-tweaked its lineup and affected a major change in its coaching system. Boosting the SMB lineup are Rico Maierhofer and Sol Mercado. Guiao said import match-up will be a big factor, pointing out they have to hold down Kevin Jones for them to have a chance against the Beermen. Curiously, San Miguel lost its last game after giving Josh Boone the boot in favor of Jones. Jones produced 35 points and 13 rebounds but those numbers were not enough to save the Beermen from falling to a 99-107 loss to the Talk n Text Tropang Texters Friday. The Elasto Painters, meanwhile, got into the win column the last time out versus the Alaska Aces after losing their tournament debut against the Barako Bull Energy. Jeff Chan hit timely three-pointers, fuelling Rain or Shine’s fourth-quarter romp that carried the team to a 92-78 conquest of the Alaska Aces Saturday. McLean struggled in his first two games in the league, but his coach is confident he would be able to adjust and adapt to PBA play in time. “Our import is struggling a little bit, but he will learn the ropes,” said Guiao. “He’s a solid, fundamentally sound player. Not athletic, but we can survive if he scores in the 20’s and rebounds well.” Needless to say, the San Miguel coaching staff has full confidence on Jones. However, Jones, a former Cleveland Cavalier, is expected to face another acid test against Beau Belga and company.
Posted on: Wed, 19 Mar 2014 09:30:56 +0000
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