MANILA – The 2019 PBA Philippine Cup has yet to start but the TNT KaTropa and Alaska Aces were already depleted as a number of key players were saddled with injuries.
KaTropa’s big men Jeth Troy Rosario and Yousef Taha were both in injury list when the league opens this Sunday at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan.
Rosario will be out for four to six weeks after deforming his nose when he was inadvertently elbowed by NLEX Road Warriors center JR Quinahan in a tune up match.
Taha is also set to miss at least two weeks of action after suffering a cut in his forehead during the same tune up match when he was hit by NLEX’s Raul Soyud.
Aces, which came from a runner-up finish in the Governors’ Cup last December, has five of its veteran players on injury list, led by leading local scorer Vic Manuel.
Manuel has been ruled out for the rest of the Philippine Cup due to a back injury, while Simon Enciso will also be out for at least six weeks due to a knee surgery.
Also out for the Aces due to various injuries were guards Chris Banchero and Jvee Casio as well as center Joachim Thoss, who has been out since last year./PN
