Meralco's do-it-all import Allen Durham expects nothing but the toughest fight from Barangay Ginebra counterpart Justin Brownlee as the Bolts and the Gin Kings duke it out for the PBA Governors' Cup title for the third time in four years.
"It's going to be fun. As a competitor, you want to play against the best and he (Brownlee) has shown he's one of the best imports in the PBA year after year so definitely, it will be a battle," said Durham of the Gin Kings' tried and tested reinforcement.
Brownlee and the Gin Kings have got the better of Durham and Co. when they previously disputed the season-ending crown, thwarting the Bolts in six games in 2016 and dealing them a seven-game heartbreaker the following year.
Durham expressed confidence the Bolts are well-equipped as they seek a different ending in Round 3.
"I actually think they (Ginebra) are a better match-up for us compared to TNT (in the semis), who got shooters all over, and I think we'll be able to use (Raymond) Almazan a little bit more as they're a bigger team," he said.
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Coach Norman Black agreed that the addition of Almazan, veteran Allein Maliksi, and rookie revelation Bong Quinto this year has made Meralco better equipped this time.
"Almazan, Maliksi and Quinto have added to our depth compared to when we faced Ginebra in the past. They've made us a better team, even though Allein's still adjusting to the team as he just joined us this conference," said Black.
"The TNT series was a tough matchup for Almazan because their big was (Troy) Rosario, he's more of a stretch four, so Almazan had a tough time offensively and defensively 'coz he had to stay with the import (KJ McDaniels) the whole time and Rosario can stretch out to the three-point line the entire game.
"I'm hoping against Ginebra, the matchup would be a lot better because of Greg (Slaughter) and Japeth (Aguilar), where Almazan will be able to stay in the paint a lot more in this series," Black added.
The Bolts successfully clawed back from a 1-2 deficit to beat TNT in the Ginebra lottery, drawing level with a 95-83 victory then getting the job done with an 89-78 triumph in the decider.
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"We felt in the first four games (of the semis), we didn't play to our full potential. We know if we do that for a full game, we can beat them. And that's what we did (in Game 5). Defensively, we really got together," said Durham.
The Bolts' stiflng defense effort held the high-scoring KaTropa to their lowest output of the season.(OL)
