BY JONAS TERRADO
The Meralco Bolts will come into a third PBA Governors’ Cup Finals showdown against Barangay Ginebra San Miguel with new pieces they hope will finally erase the bitter memory of falling short in their two previous meetings.
Coach Norman Black is confident that center Raymond Almazan, swingman Allein Maliksi and rookie forward Bong Quinto can provide the depth the Bolts needed in order to beat Ginebra after failed tries in the 2016 and 2017 editions of the season-ending conference.
“Obviously, Almazan, Maliksi and Quinto have added to our depth compared when we faced Ginebra in the past so they made us a better team,” Black said after Meralco defeated TNT KaTropa 89-78 in the deciding fifth game of their semifinal duel at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City.
Of the three, Quinto emerged as one of the heroes of Monday’s do-or-die affair, scoring eight of his 19 points in the fourth to help the Bolts pull away.
Though struggling throughout the semis, Almazan was one of the key reasons why Meralco was in good form since the start of the conference with the presence in the paint.
Maliksi, acquired from Blackwater last October, has shown his capability to contribute despite Black’s belief that the former member of San Mig Super Coffee’s Grand Slam team in 2014 has yet to fully adjust to the new surroundings.
Black thinks that the two veterans will be able to make an impact in the Finals which opens Jan. 8 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Game 2 is set Jan. 10 at the Quezon Convention Center in Lucena City, with the Big Dome hosting Games 3 and 4 on Jan. 12 and 15.
Game 5, if necessary, will be played at the Mall of Asia Arena on Jan. 17 while the cavernous Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan is set to hold Games 6 and 7 on Jan. 19 and 22 should the series go the distance.
“I actually think that (Ginebra’s) a better match up for us compared to TNT,” said Meralco import Allen Durham, who dominated TNT by posting semifinal averages of 34.4 points, 16.4 rebounds and 6.8 assists.
“Now I think we’ll be able to use Almazan a little bit more against a bigger team. I think the matchup’s pretty good. I’m excited for this matchup,” added Durham.
While Durham refused to call Ginebra a rival, Chris Newsome said there’s a big reason for the Bolts to be the hungrier team.
“Of all teams, I think there’s nobody else I would rather play than Ginebra, obviously, because of the history,” said Newsome, the Bolts’ top local scorer in Game 5 with 23 points.
“We lost to them twice. If we can go there and win it this time, that would mean a lot to me, of course the franchise and everybody in the organization.”
