The Magnolia Chicken Timplados Hotshots are at a twice-to-beat disadvantage in the PBA Season 49 Commissioner’s Cup quarterfinals against the NorthPort Batang Pier.
The Magnolia Hotshots look to sustain their momentum as they take on the top-seeded NorthPort Batang Pier in the PBA Season 49 Commissioner’s Cup quarterfinals on Thursday, Feb. 6.
The match starts at 5:00 p.m. at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
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After struggling early in the tournament, Magnolia found its groove late, winning its last three games of the eliminations and beating NLEX in a knockout playoff to secure the No. 8 seed.
Now, they face their biggest challenge yet in top-ranked NorthPort, which holds a twice-to-beat advantage after finishing with a 9-3 record.
The Batang Pier edged out the Hotshots 107-103 in their eliminations meeting, but Magnolia’s import Ricardo Ratliffe was still nursing an injury at the time.
Now fully healthy, Ratliffe joins Magnolia’s resurgent core, including Mark Barroca, Zavier Lucerom and Jerom Lastimosa, as they attempt to pull off a massive upset against the tournament’s best team.
With no margin for error, expect the battle-tested Hotshots to give NorthPort everything they have in hopes of forcing a rubber match.
(With reports from Jan Ballesteros)
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[Editor's note: This article was written by a member of the One Sports Digital with the help of AI, and then checked by the staff to ensure accuracy.]