Taulava to take on former teammates
MANILA, Philippines -- Even if it had been a normal elimination-round game, there would have been enough drama to hype up Talk ‘N Text’s match against Coca-Cola Wednesday.
That the Phone Pals actually need to win this match spices things up a bit.
Asi Taulava comes face-to-face for the first time with the team that once built a franchise around him only to trade him away in the end when the Phone Pals and the Tigers mix it up in a game that will determine whether both squads will slug it out in a wild-card playoff match of the Smart PBA Philippine Cup.
The prize awaiting the Phone Pals at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City on Wednesday is an outright quarterfinal slot, something that should deflect their thoughts away from justifying the decision to trade Taulava in exchange for Ali Peek.
Game time is 4:50 p.m. with the Phone Pals slightly favored over the skidding Tigers. Aside from the fact that the Tigers are carrying a three-game slide into the dilapidated Pasay venue, they have really nothing much to play for since they will still end up the No. 9 seed no matter what happens.
Except Taulava, who once said that the trade left him wanting to prove something to his former team. The 6-foot-9 former MVP had re-energized the Tigers a game after being traded, leading the team to five straight wins in his first six games.
But the same could not be said of the Phone Pals, who could forge a KO match with idle powerhouse Magnolia with a win even as Red Bull and Purefoods close out their elimination round stints with an academic game at 7:20 p.m.
“We are still in control of our immediate goal,” Talk ‘N Text coach Derrick Pumaren said after a 104-87 victory over Barangay Ginebra on Sunday at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City. “We know that we have to come out hard (against Coke) because they will be playing without pressure.
“And whether or not Asi (Taulava, his former center), is there or not, we need to be ready to play and achieve our immediate goal,” added Pumaren, whose wards will be pressured to win to forge a KO match against Magnolia that will give the winner a lift out of the wild-card phase.
In the event of a loss, the Phone Pals would become the natural sixth seeds and will clash with the Tigers in the wildcard, with the other matchup to pit the sputtering defending champion Gin Kings against the athletic Express. Musong R. Castillo
Source: http://sports.inquirer.net/breakingnews/breakingnews/view/20080116-112652/TNT-Pals-seek-key-win-vs-Tigers
No comments:
Post a Comment