Zavier Lucero’s stellar play is one of the reasons why Magnolia is still the only unbeaten team in the PBA Philippine Cup.
And Lucero is keen on keeping it that way for as long as he and the Hotshots can, after improving to 5-0 on Sunday with the 127-94 shellacking of the hapless Terrafirma Dyip at Ynares Center here in Antipolo City and entering a stretch of tough games that will test their mettle.
“We’re unbeaten right now, and we want to keep it that way,” Lucero said after finishing with 17 points and nine rebounds. “So we have to prepare the right way, and we have to go into the right mindset because any team can beat us on any given day, and we know that.”
The Hotshots’ next two games will be played in the next two Sundays, starting with the NLEX Road Warriors, who are playing well at 3-1, and Rain or Shine, despite a roller-coaster run at 2-2 because of manpower woes, is still considered a dark horse.
“We have to play the right way, come prepared and we should be fine,” added Lucero.
Lucero admitted that Magnolia didn’t start the way it wanted to as Terrafirma bucked an early deficit to make it a close game until early in the second quarter when Magnolia broke loose.
A 23-0 run proved to be the decisive factor, with players like Lucero, Paul Lee, and even Jerrick Ahanmisi and James Laput contributing in that stretch.
And with the game out of reach, coach Chito Victolero got the luxury of dipping his hand deep in the bench as veteran center Raffy Reavis and Joseph Eriobu got some minutes.
Victolero played all 15 players, and all of them scored at least three points in the romp.
Terrafirma fell for the fourth straight time after defeating Phoenix to start what could be its final conference in the league. The Dyip have lost a combined margin of 114 points, or an average of 28.5 per loss.
That only compounded their bleak future as the Dyip are still in the process of hopefully completing the transfer of its franchise to a potential buyer. Terrafirma has an ongoing negotiation with the owners of the Zamboanga Valientes.
The Valientes are said to be aggressive in their bid to take over the Dyip, whose initial agreement with Quezon-based Starhorse Shipping Lines fell through after its failure to submit necessary requirements and because of financial reasons.
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Amid Terrafirma’s uncertainty is the play being put up by sophomore banger Louie Sangalang, who finished with 19 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists. INQ
