Caida, CafeFrance duel in preview of title clash

MANILA, Philippines – Unbeaten Caida Tile and CafeFrance tangle today in what could be a preview of the championship, disputing the solo lead in the PBA D-League Aspirants’ Cup at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.

Locked in a three-way tie with idle Phoenix-FEU with three wins, the Tile Masters and the Bakers knock each other off the leaderboard in the keenly awaited 4 p.m. match tipped to go down-to-the-wire.

“I think Caida is the team to beat this conference,” said CafeFrance coach Egay Macaraya as he tried to downplay the Bakers’ chances.

Coming off a 94-73 rout against UP QRS/JAM Liner last Thursday, the Bakers are banking on the towering Congolese Rod Ebondo, as well as the impressive showing of Carl Bryan Cruz, Samboy de Leon, and Paul Zamar with Macaraya hopeful of drawing more solid games from his starters.

Like his counterpart, Caida coach Caloy Garcia is hoping to have a better showing that his wards’ scrambling 110-106 win over the Wangs Basketball side last Tuesday.

Despite boasting of a solid roster, Garcia knows that it will still be a tough task beating the Bakers, who were the champions of the 2015 Foundation Cup.

“They’re a champion team. They’re experienced and they’re really good. They know how to adjust,” said Garcia. “It’s going to be a tough game.”

The match also starts Caida’s tough three-game stretch where it will next face Phoenix-FEU and then UP QRS/JAM Liner.

“The next three are the top three games for me. Siguro by that time, we’ll see how good we really are,” said Garcia.

Meanwhile, Wangs and Tanduay try to break off their tie with BDO-National U at 1-2 as they clash in the 2 p.m. opener.