MERALCO answered the call of coach Norman Black to shut down Ginebra’s high-octane offensive juggernaut in Game 1 last Wednesday night.
Whether the Bolts can hack it anew will be known tonight when they tangle with the Kings in Game 2 of their best-of-seven finals duel for the PBA Governors Cup crown at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.
The match is set at 6 p.m., with Meralco seeking to score a big follow-up to its impressive 104-91 victory over Ginebra in the series opener.
Black said how his charges will fare on defense anew will be among the keys in their bid to finally get over the hump after losing to the Kings in the Big Dance in their last three battles.
“Everything for us is gonna be about defense, it’s gonna be about trying to find a way to slow them down, offensively,” Black said. “Tonight (Game 1), so far so good.”
Veteran sniper Allein Maliksi showed the way for the Bolts with 20 points, while import Tony Bishop chipped in 20 markers and 12 rebounds. Cliff Hodge and Aaron Black also gave Meralco a big lift, scoring 17 and 12, respectively.
The locals’ contributions earned praises from Black.
“I thought the locals did a great job of setting the tone, particularly Allein Maliksi who came in and shot very well,” Black said. “Finally, in the second half, it was pretty much Tony Bishop who started scoring the basketball which helped us a great deal.”
Gaining the head start in the race-to-four series is also crucial, according to Black.
“It’s very important to get that first win. If you fall behind, the series becomes much harder to catch up,” Black said. “I thought we really got off to a great start today offensively, and our defense held up very, very well.”
Justin Brownlee led Ginebra with 27 points, while Christian Standhardinger had 20 and 14.
Scottie Thompson contributed 17 points for the Kings.
Aaron Black maintained they cannot let their guards down.
“We’re happy for the win, but we’re not satisfied. Alam namin we were beaten by Ginebra in the previous series. We came out looking forward to making new history,” the younger Black said. “But we also know we can’t relax. For sure, they will come out strong in the next game.”
Norman Black is expecting another highly emotional tiff in Game 2.
The Bolts’ backup big man Raymar Jose and Ginebra forward Arvin Tolentino nearly came to blows after the game in the hallway leading to the teams’ dugouts.
“With a lot of commotion that went on at the end of this game, I can imagine Game 2 will be exciting,” he said.
