THE big guns flexed their muscles while favorite Limitless App got off to a slow start in the final leg opener of the PBA 3×3 Lakas Ng Tatlo Second Conference yesterday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Meralco, TNT, Pioneer Pro Tibay, and Purefoods emerged unscathed and seized the top spot in their respective groups on opening day of pool play in Leg 6 of the half-court tournament.
The Bolts, still playing minus injured big man Alfred Batino, booked a berth in the knockout stage by topping Pool A with a 3-0 record, including a thrilling 22-18 victory over Jorey Napoles and the Appmasters.
Winner of Leg 4, Meralco also posted wins over Sista Super Sealers (21-11), and Northport (21-13), respectively.
In Pool B, TNT and Pioneer shared top spot with similar 2-0 records on separate victories over San Miguel and Terrafirma 3×3.
Purefoods lords it in Pool C also with a 2-0 slate after turning back Master Sardines (21-9) and Platinum Karaoke (21-17).
Limitless sports a 1-2 record in Pool A for third place behind Barangay Ginebra (2-1), and tied with Sista (1-2), while NorthPort occupies the bottom spot at 1-3.
The Kings are assured of advancing to the next stage after beating Limitless (21-17) and Sista (21-11), leaving the Appmasters and Super Sealers to dispute the remaining quarterfinals berth in the group.
Limitless and Sista will clash in the final match of a six-game schedule on the final day of pool play for the last playoffs berth in their pool.
The top two teams in Pool B and C will also progress to the next round, with the eighth and last quarterfinals berth to be disputed between the third best teams in Pools B and C, respectively.
The knockout phase will be played today at the Big Dome and will serve as preliminary to Game 4 of the PBA Governors Cup finals between Meralco and Barangay Ginebra.
