Magnolia has the momentum but braces for a big Harbour Centre comeback in the pivotal Game Three of the 2009 PBL PG Flex Linoleum Cup finals at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig today.
“We have to prepare hard because I know Harbour will come back stronger in Game 3,” said Magnolia coach Koy Banal after steering the Wizards to an 84-80 win last Thursday to send the best-of-five series back to where it started Tuesday.
It was Magnolia’s first win over Harbour in four meetings this conference with the Wizards raring to go for a follow-up to move closer to a dream title run.
With the playoff reduced to a best-of-three affair, both teams are going all out in today’s 2 p.m. encounter for the go-ahead win.
The series is aired live on Solar Sports (CS9) and at www.ustream.tv/channel/pbl-games-live.
Neil Raneses bounced back from a so-so stint in Game One, which Harbour took, 84-71, with an impressive 25 point-performance in Game Two, hoping to sustain his form and bring Magnolia closer to the championship.
But Raneses will need a lot of bench support as top forward Dylan Ababou will miss the crucial match after suffering a broken nose after getting hit by a wayward hand by PJ Barua in the third quarter in Game Two.
“The boys are now focused, relaxed and very disciplined on both ends. And that’s the reason why we managed to hang on despite their repeated rallies,” said Banal. “It’s our defense that carried us through.”
Except for their 13 fastbreak points, the Batang Pier struggled in their set plays in the face of the Wizards’ no-nonsense defense anchored on Raneses, Al Magpayo and Eder Saldua.
They held prolific Harbour scorer Reed Juntilla to 12 points –his lowest output against the Wizards this conference.
Harbour coach Gallent admitted that Magnolia played on a different level in Game 2 but vowed to make key adjustments in the series they were expected to dominate.
“We lost our focus down the stretch. We have to limit our errors and improve our free throw shooting,” said Gallent.
Though the Batang Pier controlled the boards for the second straight game, they missed 13 free throws (21of-34) while the Wizards bungled only fives time (19-of-24).