Games on Tuesday
(Ninoy Aquino Stadium)
5:15 p.m. – Rain or Shine vs Blackwater
7:30 p.m. – San Miguel vs Macau
AFTER its 26-point beatdown from Bol Bol-led TNT, San Miguel Beermen (SMB) decided to bring a seven-footer and NBA-caliber import for itself moving forward.
The Beermen tapped Justin Patton, a 7-foot-1 center and 2017 NBA Draft first-round selection with stints with Minnesota, Philadelphia, Oklahoma City and Houston, to take over from Marcus Lee in the continuing PBA Commissioner’s Cup.
Mr. Patton was activated in time for the Beermen’s Holy Tuesday duel with winless guest team Macau on the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
With the 6-foot-11 Mr. Lee in tow, the reigning Philippine Cup kingpin limped to a woeful 1-2 start. Following a meager four-point output on SMB’s 112-119 loss to Titan and 10 within the 103-99 bounceback win over Converge, Mr. Lee turned in a 30-14 game against Mr. Bol however the squad badly lost, 92-118, prompting the switch.
The 28-year-old Mr. Patton makes his PBA debut against the Black Knights (0-4) at 7:30 p.m., looking to provide the Beermen the W before the league goes on a Lenten break.
Meanwhile, Rain or Shine (ROS) (3-0) is determine on keeping its spotless mark and solo leader status because it battles upset-conscious Blackwater (1-2) within the 5:15 p.m. curtain raiser.
The Elasto Painters have overcome tremendous adversities on their method to the summit, especially in hard-earned wins against TNT and Meralco.
Import Jaylen Johnson was thrown out for fighting within the last six minutes against the Tropang 5G but Yeng Guiao’s gritty charges still pulled through, 112-109. Then with Mr. Johnson serving his one-game suspension against the full-powered Bolts, the E-Painters rose to the challenge and prevailed, 109-102.
Mr. Johnson returns to energetic duty on Tuesday, plugging a giant hole within the ROS arsenal because it braces for Robert Upshaw, the 7-foot Bossing import whose 35-14 game last time around helped them post a 97-91 stunner over Magnolia. — Olmin Leyba