Talk ‘N Text coach Chot Reyes is concerned on how would his Tropang Texters get along with the Sta. Lucia Realtors in Wednesday night’s KFC-PBA Philippine Cup game at the Astrodome in Pasay City.
Especially with Jared Dillinger and Jimmy Alapag, vital cogs in TNT’s campaign to repeat as All-Filipino Cup champions, nursing separate injuries.
Sta. Lucia is playing as well as any team in the league right now. We will be hard-pressed to stay with them considering our injuries," said Reyes.
Dillinger is sidelined by a strained left knee, while Alapag suffers from a hamstring injury, although the Tropang Texters’ star playmaker suited up in the team’s last game against Purefoods and even ended up with a team-high 17 points.
Although Reyes might sound worried against a team like Sta. Lucia, Talk ‘N Text, seeking its 10th win in 15 outings, actually had an easy time when it defeated the Realtors in the first round. The Texters came through with a big third-quarter run on the way to a 100-83 victory on Oct. 25.
Kelly Williams is expected to bounce back after an abysmal performance against the Texters. The former most valuable player only had nine points on 4-of-15 field goal shooting in that game although he did come up with a game-high 16 rebounds.
Both the Texters and the Realtors are coming off victories. Talk ‘N Text pulled off a gripping 101-98 win over Purefoods in Cagayan de Oro City last Saturday, while Sta. Lucia (7-5) was able to pick up its second straight win last Dec. 16 at the expense of Ginebra, 93-88.
While Talk ‘N Text and Sta. Lucia are fighting their way to at least make the quarter-final round, Rain or Shine and Barako Bull are struggling to even earn a wild card berth as the two teams clash in the 5 p.m. opening game, with the Elasto Painters seeking to end a three-game slide.
The Energy Boosters hope to repeat their first round win over the Painters and pump life into their sagging wild card stage bid while trying to put a halt in their nine-game losing skid.
The Boosters outscored the Painters 38-13 in the second quarter before cruising to an 89-81 win in their first meeting.
Games Wednesday (Astrodome, Pasay City)
5:00 p.m. — Rain or Shine vs Barako Bull
7:30 p.m. — Sta. Lucia vs Talk ’N Text
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