Aces eye 3rd straight win; E-Painters try to arrest slide

Alaska Aces. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

Judging by the way they played their last two games, the Alaska Aces seem to have moved on from their tragic experience in the previous conference.

The Aces intend to stay on a roll in a testy face-off with the Phoenix Fuel Masters Friday in the Oppo PBA Commissioner’s Cup at Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Shane Edwards is proving to be quite an efficient choice as a replacement for the injured Rob Dozier, spearheading the Aces to victories over Tropang TNT and Rain or Shine along with locals Calvin Abueva and Sonny Thoss.

The Elasto Painters, meanwhile, suffered their third straight defeat that night and will try to right the ship against the NLEX Road Warriors in the other game at 4:15 p.m.

“We just lacked the energy, chemistry, and we did not have our usual intensity. We lost our drive,” said Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao.

Guiao admitted that his squad is suffering from a clear case of mental shutdown, something he hopes the Painters don’t fall into again when they face the Road Warriors.

NLEX, after losing to Mahindra in a previous outing, is raring to climb from a 2-2 win-loss record, and push the Elasto Painters (1-3) farther down the cellar.

Also plummeting deep in the standings after back-to-back losses are the Fuel Masters (1-2), who are counting on Kevin Pinkney to begin blending with the team’s local gunners.

“I like his basketball IQ. He’s very intelligent and we believe he will be able to help us,” said Phoenix coach Koy Banal. “Right now, our locals are still trying to learn how to play with our import.”

With Phoenix’s chemistry still a work in progress, the Aces (2-1) could exploit the situation as they continue trying to move on from the embarrassing Finals defeat to San Miguel Beer after taking a 3-0 lead in the Philippine Cup.