Bolts thrilled to face Gin Kings anew

MANILA, Philippines — The Meralco Bolts are electrified by their third titular encounter with Barangay Ginebra beginning on Jan. 7, feeling they’re better-equipped in this latest showdown with their two-time tormentors in the race for PBA Governors’ Cup gold.

“It’s a great feeling. Excited to have another shot against Ginebra, of all teams,” said Bolts stalwart Chris Newsome after Meralco punched a ticket to the finale with an 89-78 clincher over TNT KaTropa last Monday.

“I feel like there’s nobody else I’d rather play than Ginebra because of the history. We lost to them two times so if we go in there and get a win this time, I think that would mean a lot to us,” he added.

The Bolts have always been a contender in the season-ending conference with the dependable Allen Durham as reinforcement. They came close in 2016 and 2017 and in both occasions, it was the Gin Kings who spoiled their plans, winning in six the first time and coming out victorious in a hill-hill duel the following year.

Since their last confrontation, Meralco has added big man Raymond Almazan, veteran Allein Maliksi and rookie standout Bong Quinto to the mix. On the other hand, Ginebra got Stanley Pringle on board as well as former Bolt Jarred Dillinger.

“Almazan, Maliksi and Quinto have added to our depth compared to when we faced Ginebra in the past. They’ve made us a better team, even though Allein’s still adjusting to the team as he just joined us this conference,” said Bolts coach Norman Black. 

The Bolts expect to utilize Almazan more against the Ginebra frontline of Greg Slaughter and Japeth Aguilar than they did against the KaTropa.

“I actually think they (Ginebra) are a better match-up for us compared to TNT. They got shooters all over, and I think we’ll be able to use Almazan a little bit more as they’re a bigger team,” said Durham.

“The TNT series was a tough matchup for Almazan because their big was (Troy) Rosario, he’s more of a stretch four, so Almazan had a tough time offensively and defensively because he had to stay with the import (KJ McDaniels) the whole time and Rosario can stretch out to the three-point line the entire game,” said Black.

“I’m hoping against Ginebra, the matchup would be a lot better because of Greg and Japeth, where Almazan will be able to stay in the paint a lot more in this series,” he added.

Round 3 of the Meralco-Ginebra rivalry blasts off at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.