Barring any unfortunate injury, Ginebra might just be on its way to winning another Governor's Cup Championship. With the solid game they played tonight, they outclassed the Meralco Bolts and nearly had a twenty point lead as the game neared the end of the 4th Quarter. Basketball fans in the arena were making an early exit, knowing that the game was more or less decided even with five minutes to spare.
And I expect nothing less from the team that knocked out the Grand Slam seeking San Miguel Beermen with a thirty-point blowout and in only one game. And if you look at Ginebra's front line, they are actually pretty distinguished players. Joe Devance was the first overall draft pick in the 2007 PBA Rookie Draft. Japhet Aguilar was the first overall draft pick in the 2009 PBA Rookie Draft. And Greg slaughter was the first overall draft pick in the 2013 PBA Rookie Draft. LA Tenorio was the 4th pick overall in 2006 and Scottie Thompson was the 5th pick overall in 2015. Not many PBA teams can say they have a core made up of high caliber talent. Plus, you have the PBA's Coach with the most wins.
Greg Slaughter's return has really made this Ginebra team deadlier. It is hard to double Justin Brownlee if you have a 6'11 player who can play the post or go for the rebound. Contrast that with Alan Durham on the Meralco side. Once he decides to go for a three point shot, it has to go in. Otherwise, there's hardly any chance they'll get it back.
And the three point shot is really Meralco's only way of keeping this game close since they don't have any other post threats aside from Alan Durham. Ranidel de Ocampo is really more of a stretch 4 than a post up presence like Kelly Williams. And tonight, Meralco's threes were not falling in as much as they wanted. And even Ginebra's three-point shooters were finding their range.
Tim Cone on the other hand prefers twos rather than threes. The higher percentage shot is better. That's why his teams are susceptible to losing to teams that can shoot the three at an excellent clip. Coach Cone would rather be beaten by the three, than inside the paint. And that's why San Miguel Beer was a nightmare match-up for him. That is until Greg Slaughter solved the Jun Mar Fajardo problem.
Meralco doesn't have a Jun Mar Fajardo. Alan Durham is the closest thing they have to a post up player. So, Durham will have to focus on a purely inside game. Leave the threes to your shooters like Baser Amer, Garvo Lanete, Jared Dillinger and even Reynel Hugnatan. If these players get hot from the three point line, then Meralco might make this finals series interesting to watch.
Coach Norman Black can actually try playing a speed game with Amer, Tolomia, Newsome, Dilinger and Durham. But that would only work if they can get the jump on Ginebra and build up an early lead in their next game. If Newsome could keep dunking in the open court like he did with that incredible dunk in the first quarter, then maybe Meralco could have a chance.
Another strategy is to double Justin Brownlee and let the locals beat Meralco in scoring. But if they can somehow shutdown Brownlee, and keep Ginebra in a low scoring game, then maybe they can tie this series.
It would be interesting to see both teams' adjustments in game 2. But without players who can bang bodies on the inside, a Ginebra sweep is probably gonna happen.
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