Montana goes for win No. 2 vs Viva

Montana Pawnshop tries to come up with a follow up to its upset win over PBL Unity Cup champion Fash Liquid Power as it clashes with First Conference runner-up Viva Mineral Water today in the PBL Platinum Cup at the San Beda Gym in Manila.

The Jewellers hope to sustain the momentum of their 60-57 win over Fash Liquid Power in Saturday’s opener in Pasig City as they tackle the Water Force at 1:45 p.m.

Welcoat Paints and Blu Star Detergents, on the other hand, dispute the early lead in a clash of opening day winners at 3:45 p.m.

Montana is expected to lean anew on Jordan Salvador and last conference’s MVP Gary David, who combined for 29 points in pulling the rug from under powerhouse Liquid Powers.

Viva, bannered by the mainstays of UAAP champion Far Eastern University, bowed to Cebuana Lhuillier-backed RP Nationals, 77-71, in an exhibition game.

"There’s no excuse and I believe this loss will teach us a lot of things," said Viva coach Coy Banal, who arrived Friday night after attending the basketball organizations of the University of Michigan and Michigan State.

Two other teams to watch in this season-ending tournament are the Paint Masters and the Detergent Kings, a pair of ball clubs beefed up by a number of key acquisitions.

Welcoat, for one, picked up James Yap, Irvin Sotto and JR Reyes from the dispersal and rookie drafts and the three delivered instantly by leading the team to a 71-60 bashing of Sunkist-University of Santo Tomas Saturday.

Blu, for its part, got Jenkins Mesina, Marc Victoria, Nino Canaleta and a number of University of the Philippines standout, all instrumental in helping the Detergent Kings edge the ICTSI Archers, 85-80, in overtime Sunday.