Burger tests Angeles in duel with Bacchus

Burger King recently traded forward Mark Canlas to Bacchus Energy Drink for shooting guard Alex Angeles, hoping to get more firepower from the perimeter as it takes on an unpredictable Toyota Otis today in the PBL Lipovitan Amino Sports Cup at The Arena in San Juan.

Angeles, a former San Beda standout, will immediately suit up at 2 p.m. today when the Whoppers, who are currently tied at third place on 5-4 (win-loss) slates with the idle Pharex Medics, face the Sparks, who have won two of their last three games to improve to 2-6.

“We need to balance our lineup because we only have one legitimate point guard (Khiel Misa),” Burger King coach Allan Gregorio yesterday told The STAR. “With Alex’s arrival, Marcy (Arellano) can now move back to the shooting guard position where he is more comfortable.”

“Every game is crucial at this point. Burger King matches well against us but we also match up well against them. For us to beat them, we got to do the little things successfully like defense, rebounding and hustle,” Toyota Otis coach Ariel Vanguardia said.

Canlas, a member of the University of Santo Tomas team that snared the 2006 UAAP crown, is also debuting today when the Raiders clash with the Noosa Shoe Stars at 4 p.m.

Bacchus (4-5) is on a two-game streak, thanks to Rey Guevarra, one of the players allowed by Letran College to play in the PBL

“We got back to Rey last week and we also got Mark Canlas via a trade with Burger King. We’re looking forward to avenging our first round loss to Noosa and improving our chances for a playoff berth,” said Bacchus mentor Lawrence Chongson.

Gregorio is also hoping to end a two-game slump suffered at the hands of Harbour Centre, 66-77, and the Hapee Toothpaste, 83-85, in double overtime last week.

“We got to play aggressive again and learn from our mistakes for us to end the slump,” said Gregorio. The Sparks, for their part, were also coming off a defeat to the Raiders, 71-75, that ended their first back-to-back wins this conference.