Blackwater targets elite list of champs

Game today (Ynares Arena)

3 p.m. – NLEX vs Blackwater Sports

MANILA, Philippines - Blackwater Sports hopes to do what NLEX had been doing against its PBA D-League Finals opponents – sweep – as the Elite go for another victory in Game Two of the Foundation Cup best-of-three title series at the Ynares Arena in Pasig City today.

“We hope to end it today,” said Blackwater coach Leo Isaac in Filipino.

The Elite won their very first Finals game over a team that swept all its rivals in winning the first four championships in the league, pulling off a scrambling 70-67 victory over the highly fancied Road Warriors in the series’ opener last week.

They gun for the clincher at 3 p.m. 

Isaac said the four-day rest enabled his troops to recharge their tired and banged-up bodies following a grueling Game One clash.

“More importantly, it allowed my players to condition their minds that they can beat NLEX,” said Isaac.

But the Road Warriors are expected to bounce back strong and force a winner-take-all match.

“We didn’t match (Blackwater’s) energy. But I thought the turning was the third quarter when we gave up 27 points and 15 rebounds. Also, Blackwater made stops in the end and we didn’t,” said NLEX coach Boyet Fernandez.

He added the Road Warriors have put Game One behind them with the defending champion looking forward squaring off the series.

“We just lost Game One but it isn’t over yet. They still have to beat us one more game. We’ll be ready for Game Two. We just have to bring the right mindset and attitude if we intend to extend the series to Game Three,” said Fernandez.