And that was against a team not considered to be in the ranks of the powerhouses.
With his top defensive men likely to still be out of action, Reyes’ Tropang Texters face a more formidable foe in B-Meg at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday as they try to stay on top in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
That Sunday defeat was the second worst in the history of the franchise, its first in more than a month, and one that put the No. 1 seeding in the elimination round in question with Petron Blaze lurking just half-a-game behind.
“Without our top four defenders, we’re sitting ducks,” Reyes posted after taking a 96-131 loss at the hands of Powerade two nights ago. “We’re back to being the worst defensive team in the PBA and it showed tonight (Sunday).”
Bannered by two-time MVP James Yap, the rampaging Llamados have one of the most potent lineups in the tournament.
After a rocky start under Tim Cone, B-Meg has won its last five games for a 7-4 card and is still in the running for one of the top two elimination round spots and a twice-to-beat bonus in the quarterfinals.
The Boosters will actually take the floor first when they try to push the Alaska Aces on the brink of an early Christmas break in the 5:15 p.m. game.
Petron is at 8-3 and could find itself in the lead at the end of the night should the Boosters and the Llamados stretch their respective win runs to six games and equal the longest streak in the tournament owned by Talk ‘N Text.
As things stand, only Shopinas.com, winless in 12 games, has gotten the boot, and the Aces would need to sweep their last three games and hope that the Tigers drop their last two to safely make it to the quarterfinals.