Games on Wednesday
(Smart Araneta Coliseum)
5 p.m. – Rain or Shine vs Converge (Game 1)
7:30 p.m. – Ginebra vs Meralco (Game 1)
Games on Thursday
(Ninoy Aquino Stadium)
5 p.m. – NorthPort* vs Magnolia
7:30 p.m. – TNT* vs Eastern
*NorthPort, TNT with twice-to-beat advantage
MAGNOLIA forward Zav Lucero looks forward to helping the No. 8 seeded Hotshots take down his old team, top-seeded NorthPort, in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup quarterfinals.
Mr. Lucero played a key role as the Hotshots averted early elimination off a 3-6 start and salvaged a ticket to the Last-8 by winning their last four games, including an emphatic 112-81 romp over NLEX in Sunday’s rubbermatch for eighth.
Next up for the 6-foot-6 Mr. Lucero is a duel with former Batang Pier teammates like Arvin Tolentino and Joshua Munzon, who enjoy a twice-to-beat advantage in this showdown for finishing the eliminations at No. 1 with 9-3.
For the former UP star, sentiments and friendships take a backseat here.
“It’s the next team that we have to win against to be able to move on,” Mr. Lucero, who was adjudged PBA Press Corps Player of the Week for the period Jan. 29 to Feb. 2, said of NorthPort.
“We’ve been in four do-or-die (games); it’s two more do-or-dies to get to the next round and they’re the next team. So we have to prepare the right way and I’m confident we’ll be able to get the job done as long as we continue to play how we play (lately).”
Jio Jalalon, a long-time Magnolia stalwart who switched places with Mr. Lucero in a July 2024 trade, is in the same boat over at the Batang Pier’s camp.
The other Last-8 matchups are just as interesting as NorthPort-Magnolia.
Second seed TNT, the reigning back-to-back Governors’ Cup titlists led by the prolific Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, take on seventh-ranked guest team Hong Kong Eastern. The Tropang Giga need just one win here to proceed straight into the semifinal round.
Third seed Converge, benefitting from the mid-season arrival of Jordan Heading and Justin Baltazar, mixes it up with Rain or Shine (ROS) in a best-of-three contest pitting “kabalen” pride. Elasto Painters coach Yeng Guiao is friends with Dennis Uy and Gov. Delta Pineda, the FiberXers’ team owner and deputy coach, respectively, but vowed to set the” Pampanga connection” aside.
No. 4 Barangay Ginebra and No. 5 Meralco rekindle their playoffs rivalry in a race-to-two. The Gin Kings and the Bolts previously battled through four finals, three quarterfinals and two semifinal showdowns since 2016.
Notes: PBA commissioner Willie Marcial said the league has started the ball rolling for choosing the next 10 inductees to the “50 Greatest Players” honor roll ahead of the league’s 50th-anniversary celebrations this year. According to Marcial, the selection committee will hold its initial meeting on Thursday. Named to this body are legends Ramon Fernandez, Allan Caidic and Atoy Co, legendary coach Dante Silverio, former PBA Commissioner Sonny Barrios, veteran scribes Ding Marcelo, Al Mendoza, Philippine Sportswriters Association president and The STAR sports editor Nelson Beltran, The STAR columnist Quinito Henson and seasoned sportscaster Andy Jao. — Olmin Leyba
