Why not Caguioa?

Mark Caguioa has sat out the last two Barangay Ginebra games with an ankle issue but a team source said he could be ready to play in Game 2 against San Miguel Beer in the PBA Philippine Cup best-of-7 semifinals at the Smart Araneta Coliseum tonight. Caguioa, 38, is listed day-to-day. “Hopefully, he can play (in Game 2),” said Ginebra assistant coach Richard del Rosario.

After battling Rain Or Shine in three gruelling games over six days, short-handed Ginebra showed up for Game 1 with a half-empty tank at the Big Dome last Friday. In those three games, LA Tenorio averaged 45 minutes, Joe De Vance 43, Japeth Aguilar 41 and Scottie Thompson 40. The heavy load took a toll on their legs as last Friday, Tenorio scored only six points on 3-of-7 field goals with a rebound and two assists in 29:32 minutes, JDV four points on 2-of-6 field goals in 18:31 minutes, Aguilar 17 points in 27:02 minutes and Thompson 17 points in 36:59 minutes.

Three of the four players are over 30. Tenorio is 33, JDV 36 and Aguilar 31. Thompson, 24, is the youngest of the bunch. Ginebra coach Tim Cone went deep to his bench in extending his rotation in Game 1, bringing in Prince Caperal (who hadn’t played in the last four outings), Raymond Aguilar, Jett Manuel and Paolo Taha. Greg Slaughter’s continuing absence was a damper. The 7-foot center has missed Ginebra’s last four assignments with a bad ankle sprain. Like Caguioa, he’s day-to-day. The latest he’ll be reactivated is in time for Game 4 at the MOA Arena on Thursday but if Cone waits that long, San Miguel might have already opened a 3-0 series lead.

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Without Slaughter, Ginebra did a yeoman’s job of limiting JuneMar Fajardo’s touches. In the elims, Fajardo averaged 12.9 field goal and 9.5 free throw tries, scoring 22.8 points a game. In Game 1, the Kraken was held to five field goal and two free throw attempts, hitting only nine points. It was Fajardo’s first game the entire conference where he didn’t score in double figures. There are now only three players who’ve scored in twin digits in every game – Aguilar, Marcio Lassiter and Matthew Wright. In defending Fajardo, Ginebra denied the entry pass, doubled at the post, took away his sweet spot and boxed him out on the offensive boards.

Ginebra’s problem was while Fajardo was shackled, things opened up for San Miguel’s shooters who went crazy from beyond the arc, knocking down 16-of-34 triples compared to the Barangay’s 5-of-19.

A healthy Caguioa could’ve helped Ginebra’s cause. He’s a six-time PBA champion, a three-time PBA scoring leader, the MVP in 2012 and the Rookie of the Year in 2001. The downside is Caguioa is in the twilight of a celebrated career. He averaged in double figure points in his first 12 seasons but his scoring clip has since dropped to 9.9 in 2014-15, 7.0 in 2015-16 and 4.4 in 2016-17. His average minutes have also gone down from 25.8 to 21.9 to 10.9 minutes over the last three seasons. In the elims, he’s averaging 4.0 points in 13.3 minutes.

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If Caguioa plays, he’ll be matched up against Alex Cabagnot at two or Matt Ganuelas-Rosser at three or Von Pessumal or Lassiter at either spot. Any of those matchups will be a challenge. But Caguioa has experience, smarts, abilidad and that never-say-die attitude. The veteran could still provide a spark for Ginebra like he did when he had seven points and six rebounds in Ginebra’s 89-78 win over Magnolia to open the conference. Caguioa has not scored in double figures in a game so far this conference (his high was eight against Alaska) so he’s overdue.

For Game 2, Cone is hoping Tenorio and JDV will have rested enough to give it their all. They’ve been Ginebra’s barometers in the Philippine Cup. In Ginebra’s eight wins, Tenorio averaged 18.5 points and in six losses, 9.0. JDV’s impact is the same. Since his return to action, Ginebra is 3-2. JDV averaged 13.3 points in the three wins and 4.0 in the two setbacks. Beyond Tenorio and JDV, Ginebra must generate production from Aguilar, Thompson, Jervy Cruz, Sol Mercado and Kevin Ferrer. Raymond Aguilar delivered 16 points in Ginebra’s 100-96 win over San Miguel in the elims but last Friday, he was missing in action.

More than offense, Ginebra’s defense must be unforgiving if Cone hopes to even the series count. San Miguel’s Arwind Santos was on fire from start to finish last Friday. He’s a matchup nightmare for any team and when the Spiderman’s on the prowl, there’s no stopping him. Lassiter is another headache for Ginebra. If Ginebra sags to control Fajardo, it becomes a turkey shoot for San Miguel’s gunners. The key is to obstruct Fajardo’s vision to locate the riflemen off the double team. That’s difficult to do without Slaughter.