Bay Area brings back Andrew Nicholson for QF battle vs. ROS

Andrew Nicholson is back for the Dragons. Dennis Acosta (file photo)

By Ivan Saldajeno

MANILA—Bay Area will be fielding in Andrew Nicholson again for its PBA Commissioner's Cup quarterfinal game against Rain Or Shine on Friday at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig.

The league announced on Thursday that the Dragons reactivated the 6-foot-10 center for their showdown against the Elasto Painters.

In relation to that, Myles Powell was placed under the injured list after suffering a sprain in practice.

Nicholson played four games for Bay Area midway into its elimination round campaign, averaging 38.5 points, 11.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.5 steals, and 0.3 blocks a night.

However, it was within the said four-game stretch where the team suffered its only two losses so far in the conference, against Ginebra and Meralco.

The Dragons decided to finish the eliminations with Powell, and his first game back was interestingly enough against the Elasto Painters, who were debuting Ryan Pearson then.

Bay Area pummeled ROS, 120-87, on Nov. 11, but the complexion is expected to change on Friday when Nicholson steps in anew.

According to the agreement made, Nicholson is listed as the Dragons' alternate import and Powell is the original import, which means Nicholson has to let go of his spot when Powell gets reactivated.

Once Powell gets cleared to play again, the guest team could never change imports again.

Bay Area holds a once-to-win advantage against ROS in their quarterfinal tie being the top seed after the eliminations, which means the former gets a quick pass to the semifinals with a win on Friday.

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