BLACKWATER tries to snap out of a three-game losing skid and officially reach the quarterfinals while Magnolia aims to extend its winning streak to six games in the Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup on Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Blackwater is in sixth with a 5-4 win-loss record. The Bossing face a Converge side at 3 p.m. before the Hotshots’ 6 p.m. game against the streaking Rain or Shine Elasto Painters.
A victory by the Bossing would formalize their entry to the top eight with only a game left before the elimination round ends.
The FiberXers, at ninth place with a 4-6 record, try to salvage a possible playoff for the last quarterfinal seat with a crucial win over the Bossing, who is coming off a disappointing 68-98 defeat to the NLEX Road Warriors last Friday.
Rain or Shine, meanwhile, shoots for a fourth consecutive victory as it plays its last elimination game against red-hot Magnolia.
“We’re extremely happy with the position we’re in now but we have one big game coming up—it’s a do or die,” Rain or Shine coach Chris Gavina. “We went through a whole month of not winning and now three wins in a row. Lessons were learned through fire.”
With their successive wins over NLEX, Blackwater and Terrafirma, Rain or Shine may end up in a possible playoff showdown with Converge at eighth spot.
But the Hotshots, who are sporting a 6-3 win-loss card capped highlighted by a five-game winning streak, are positioning themselves for a spot in the best-of-three quarterfinals.