Stars Shine in Week I of PBA Bubble
By Eddie Alinea of The Manila Times
PhilBoxing.com
Wed, 21 Oct 2020
The PBA has restarted and so has the race for the first league Bubble MVP.
After a week of action in the lone conference the country’s and Asia’s first play-for-pay league is offering in celebration of its 45th year anniversary – the Philippine Cup – due to the Covid 19 pandemic, Cebuano RR Pogoy and his TNT Tropang Giga opened their campaign on a bright note.
That is after the 6-foot-2 guard, showing no trace of the long, seven-month of hibernation, showed up at the Angeles University Foundation Sports and Cultural Center in Angeles City in Pampanga to answer the opening buzzer of the league’s bubble, serving notice of what to come in the 10-week tournament.
Pogoy sizzled for a career-best 45 points that October 5 debut against the Alaska Aces. 100-95, and helped TNT, the flagship of the three-team MVP (Many V. Pangilinan) Group seeking an end to the arch-rival RSA (Ramon S. Ang) conglomerate’s five-year domination not only of the All-Filipino but the league as well.
Pogoy continued his dominating show with an 11-point, 9-rebound and two-steal in Tropang Giga’s crushing past Terrafirma, 112-101, eight days later.
Coach Bong Ravena’s charges, looked to have paid dearly for RR’s consistency seeing the sweet-shooting Pogoy sprain in a 15-point, four-rebound job in an impressive 107-88 followup against reigning champion San Miguel Beer on October 16.
That trifecta of superb performances earned for him the first and PBA Press Corps Bubble Player of the Week for the period covering Oct. 11-18. He, too, he appeared as a top contender for the Season’s MVP.
That is of PBA Chair Ricky Vargas’ wish will be followed.
And for the Tropang Ciga, the temporary leadership of the dozen-team cast this early of the series at 3-0 win-loss card they hope to maintain and hand Boss MVP his first championship since reigning as Philippine Cup titlist of the 2011-12 Season.
Of course, the Tropang Ciga dealt erstwhile co-leader Phoenix Super LPG, 110-91 last Monday for their immaculate 4-0 slate but that will be featured in week 2 of the bubble.
Rain or Shine sentinel Adrian Wong, meanwhile, came out as the first recipient of the PBAPC Rookie of the Week following his being the first freshman named Best Player of the Game with a 15-point, two-rebound, and two-assists in the team’s gutsy 70-68 win over Northport on Oct. 18.
TNT, actually has four players vying for the Season MVP with Bobby Ray Parks Jr., son of an unprecedented seven-time PBA Best Import Awardee, veteran Jayson Castro and new acquisition JP Erram joining Pogoy in that list.
The Phoenix Super LPG had three in the list for the weekly citation given by members of media covering the league beat-- -- team top scorer Matthew Wright, Jason Perkins and Justin Chua.
That number was matched by crowd favorite and, likewise, then still unbeaten Barangay Ginebra – Stanley Pringle, Prince Caperal and Japeth Aguilar.
The Kings were to battle Phoenix Super LPG on Wednesday night gunning for their fourth straight win and a share of temporary top spot in the 12-team cast at the Angeles U Foundation gym in Angeles City.
After the first seven days of hostilities, the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters listed Rey Nambatac and Jayvee Mocon rounding out the roster of Season MVP aspirants.
Like TNT, the Elasto Painters, with four rookies in their line up, got off to a 3-0 start in the opening week.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eddie Alinea of The Manila Times.
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