By REYNALD MAGALLON
San Miguel Beer and Converge lock horns in what is expected to be a festive yet fiery first out-of-town game of the 2023 PBA Commissioner’s Cup when the league goes to Tiaong, Quezon on Saturday, Nov. 25.
Tip-off of the clash is at 5:30 p.m. with both the Beermen and the FiberXers battling it out before an expected jam-packed crowd inside the Tiaong Convention Center.
San Miguel is looking to notch its first win streak of the season after finally barging into the win column with a 93-83 victory over Meralco last week despite playing shorthanded.
Health remains an issue for the Beermen heading into the contest with Vic Manuel still out of commission and Jericho Cruz, Marcio Lassiter, and Jeron Teng all missing the last game due to respective injuries.
Added to the players questionable for the contest are Terrence Romeo and rookie Kyt Jimenez who both sustained injuries in the last game.
While there’s some optimism that some of the players might be able to suit up in the Quezon clash, especially Teng who will be facing his former team for the first time since signing with SMB in the off season, much of the load will still be on the shoulders of seven-time Most Valuable Player June Mar Fajardo, last season’s scoring champion CJ Perez and import Ivan Aska.
On the other hand, pulling the rug from under the incomplete SMB might also be the opportunity for Converge to start turning things around following a sloppy start to the season.
Pegged as one of the potential dark horses before the season, the FiberXers slumped to the last spot of the standings after dropping their first three games in the conference.
Converge head coach Aldin Ayo is obviously still in search for the perfect combination in his young lineup to finally pick up the elusive first win.
Import Tom Vodanovich has been solid for the FiberXers in the first three games but will need more help from his local supporting cast especially from the likes of Jerrick Balanza, Aljun Melecio, Justin Arana and Alec Stockton – all of which are expected to be the leaders in the crew following the departure of their previous leading scorers.
