MANILA, Philippines – Meralco and Phoenix Super LPG, two teams on the verge of elimination, will play each other in the PBA Philippine Cup on Friday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in an attempt to breathe new life into their respective aspirations.

The Bolts are now in 10th place, slightly ahead of the 3-6 Fuel Masters, after a two-game slump that left them with a 3-5 record.

But a victory would increase the likelihood that Meralco or Phoenix will finish in the top eight and advance to the quarterfinals, or at the very least, to a tie for one of the remaining spots in the magic circle.

“Whoever wins has a real chance to rise,” stated coach Luigi Trillo. The Bolts will have a difficult final stretch as they work their way through the 11-game elimination round, first facing Magnolia on Sunday and then San Miguel Beer on May 4.

Trillo completed the calculation already. “Every game matters,” he said.

“Going to our last four games, our margin for error iisa lang. With that loss to Converge, we now have to win all three of our remaining (elims) games to secure a quarterfinals spot, maybe a top six,” Trillo said.

If not for last Sunday’s 99-104 loss to previously winless and eliminated Converge, the Bolts would not be in this situation. In part, this was due to rookie Bryan Santos scoring a career-high 22 points to lead the FiberXers to the unexpected victory.

According to Trillo, Santos is only the most recent opponent to rise to the occasion. “If you notice, in our losses there is always someone who explodes,” he said.

“Versus NLEX is (Robert) Bolick, in Blackwater is (Rey) Nambatac, in TNT is (Calvin) Oftana, against NorthPort is (JM) Calma. Then the last time was Santos.”

Meanwhile, David Murrell is free to make an agreement with Ginebra after the cutoff time

The window for competing PBA collaborators to agree to terms with the most recent slam dunk champion closed at the completion of business hours on Tuesday, allowing MAGNOLIA free-agent David Murrell to now join with Barangay Ginebra.

Each of the nine non-SMC clubs were notified by the PBA Commissioner’s Office in a memo that Ginebra intended to sign the former UP Maroon, who additionally had been demoted to a free agent without any restrictions by Magnolia, in compliance with the league regulations applicable to sister teams.

The Commissioner’s Office issued a notice to the nine remaining PBA teams indicating their desire to agree to the high-profile flier to nullify the Ginebra proposal, giving them until Tuesday at the latest, or five days.

Murrell’s signing rights automatically passed to Ginebra on Wednesday when PBA commissioner Willie Marcial certified that no team had indicated a desire to sign him.
The signing of Murrell is the first move in Ginebra mentor Tim Cone’s plan to fill in the one that powers the holes in his lineup after long-term injuries to Aljon Mariano and Jeremiah Gray, as well as an injury that sidelined starter Jamie Malonzo.

Cone stated the Philippine Gin Kings are still searching for a single additional player, most likely someone from the MPBL or the free-agent market. The Gin Kings’ next game is an away game against Converge in Cagayan de Oro on Saturday.

The Ginebra camp has reportedly inquired unofficially about the converging company guard Schonny Winston, according to sources who spoke with SPIN.ph. However, they said that there is significant disagreement between the two parties on what was once the La Salle star’s compensation.

After a lackluster debut campaign with the Philippine Basketball Association’s Road Warriors and a futile comeback at Converge following the departure of Jeff Cariaso in favor of Aldin Ayo as coach, Murrell—who was selected by NLEX in the subsequent round of the 2021 PBA draft, at 20th overall—now has the opportunity to revitalize his professional career.

After being purchased by Magnolia in exchange for Abu Tratter, Murrell played sporadically there until being placed on the unrestricted free agency list on April 13 of last year to make room for Jerrick Balanza, who had just been acquired.