MANILA – The scheduled matches of TNT Tropang Giga and Terrafirma Dyip today in the 2021 Philippine Cup got postponed due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), according to the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
On Tuesday, PBA announced that the match between Tropang Giga and Magnolia Hotshots and Dyip against Alaska Aces will be moved to a later date. This, after four Tropang Giga players “have returned tests that were either positive or need to be confirmed for COVID-19 under government-approved league protocols.”
“The four players are now isolated and will be tested again,” the league advisory said. “The rest of the team who tested negative are also isolated and will be retested.”
Meanwhile, Dyip players yielded negative results from COVID-19 but under isolation since they were the previous opponent of the Tropang Giga.
With this, the league has issued a new set of Philippine Cup match-ups for today, with Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters taking on NorthPort Batang Pier at three in the afternoon, while the Aces will battle the Hotshots at six in the evening.
Meanwhile, Rain or Shine Elasto Painters went cold on offense in the endgame but escaped with a 71-62 win over Blackwater Bossing on Sunday night at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.
Clinging to a 71-56 advantage after two free throws by Rey Nambatac with over four minutes left, the Painters struggled to convert a basket the rest of the way with their disoriented offensive sets.
The Bossing took advantage of this to trim the deficit to 71-62 on four straight points by Paul Desiderio and a layup by Eduardo Daquioag. However, the Blackwater could not come even closer as they also fumbled on their shots.
Nambatac tallied a double-double of 21 points and 12 rebounds, while Norbert Torres added 13 points as the Painters tied Meralco Bolts on top of the standings with a 2-0 win-loss slate.
“We knew Blackwater was going to come in, a great deal of fight, effort, and energy,” Painters head coach Chris Gavina said. “The Bossing were ready. We knew we had to fight with every ounce of our resiliency on both ends of the floor.”/PN
