BARANGAY Ginebra tries to move closer to snatching a twice-to-beat in the playoffs when it battles Blackwater in the Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner’s Cup on Friday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Gin Kings, tied for second place with the San Miguel Beermen behind conference-leader Star Hotshots with a 6-2 won-lost record, clash with the hapless Elite (2-7) at 7 p.m.
In the first match at 4:15 p.m., ninth-place GlobalPort (3-6) hopes to keep pushing in its remaining two games as it faces Rain or Shine (5-4).
LA Tenorio initiated an early burst by the Gin Kings, import Justin Brownlee buried clutch shots and veteran forward Joe Devance and sophomore guard Scottie Thompson made key contributions as Ginebra beat San Miguel, 107-99, last Sunday to boost its morale going in its final three assignments in the eliminations.
Brownlee had 34 points, 12 rebounds, three steals and four blocks, while Tenorio and Thompson added 20 and 18 points, respectively, in the victory.
The Elite continue to grope in the conferende despite the all-around effort of 6-foot-10 American reinforcement Greg Smith, a Gilas Pilipinas prospect for naturalization who played before for Houston, Dallas and Minnesota in the National Basketball Association.
Smith scored 29 points and grabbed 25 rebounds in 43 minutes in their 87-96 loss to Mahindra more than two weeks ago.
The Fresno State product leads the league in rebounding at 22.44 per game and also has impressive norms of 26.7 points and 4.8 assists in nine games he played.
Those numbers worry Gin Kings Head Coach Tim Cone who considers Smith as one of the best imports in the conference.
“Blackwater has a strong big man. They have a good import. It will be interesting to see how we will perform against them,” Cone said.