Meralco gets 1-week break for BCL Asia in revised PBA PH Cup sked

Meralco's PBA Philippine Cup elimination round stint will end before May ends to give way to BCL Asia. PBA Images (file photo)

By Ivan Saldajeno

MANILA--Meralco will be the first team to conclude its campaign in the PBA Philippine Cup eliminations as the club will have a one-week gap between its last game in the season-ending conference's preliminary round and its first game in the BCL Asia.

The Bolts' supposed last two games in the PBA Philippine Cup elims, which coincided with the June 9-15 schedule of BCL Asia, will now be played on earlier dates in the revised PBA Philippine Cup fixtures.

Meralco's game against Magnolia, initially scheduled on June 8, will now be played on May 14, still at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

On the other hand, the Bolts' last game of the conference elims against Barangay Ginebra, initially set for June 15 at the Ynares Center 1 in Antipolo, will now be held on May 30 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City, effectively giving Meralco June 1-8 as its preparation period for BCL Asia.

Also affected was the supposed May 21 clash between Meralco and TNT, which will now be played on May 11 at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

The Bolts will still get to play on May 21 at the Ynares Center 1, but this time against the Blackwater Bossing in a rescheduled game initially booked for May 28.

While four Meralco games were moved to earlier dates, another match against NLEX was moved to a later date from May 16 to May 25 at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig.

With the Bolts, currently tied with the Phoenix Fuel Masters in seventh place at 2-3 in the standings, already finishing their campaign before the end of May, they will have a longer wait before they find out if they make the playoffs or not.

Their tough pre-BCL Asia grind--their last push for a quarterfinal spot--begins on Friday night against the NorthPort Batang Pier at the PhilSports Arena.

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