PBA: Magnolia shifts focus to twice-to-beat after loss to Ginebra

Magnolia Hotshots head coach Chito Victolero during a PBA Philippine Cup game againt Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings. –PBA IMAGES

MANILA, Philippines—As the race for the PBA Philippine Cup playoffs heated up, Magnolia coach Chito Victolero decided to focus on what’s ahead for the Hotshots.

Instead of dwelling on Sunday’s loss to Ginebra in “Manila Clasico” action at Araneta Coliseum, Victolero has his sights set on securing a twice-to-beat advantage.

READ: PBA: Ginebra rallies to beat Magnolia in key clash

“We can’t dwell on this one. We have to look at this game until 12 tonight and think about NLEX as our next game,” said Victolero after their 85-81 loss to the Gin Kings. “We’ll be trying to have that twice-to-beat advantage because it’s still in our control.”

Despite the loss, Magnolia remains tied for the top seed with NLEX with 7-2 records.

Under the Philippine Cup format, the top four teams at the end of the elimination round earn the twice-to-beat incentive in the quarterfinals.

READ: PBA: Magnolia side eager to shed ‘Introvoys’ tag

Thanks to the Hotshots’ strong start to the conference, Victolero isn’t too concerned about falling out of playoff contention. The priority now is clear: lock in the playoff bonus with two games left in the eliminations.

“At least we got some wins earlier [in the conference] because in the last one, we really had a hard time. We were chasing wins in the end,” he said. “Now, though, we’re sure of the quarterfinals and we’re just chasing the incentives. We will go for it and we’ll prepare ourselves to get that.”

Conveniently, the Hotshots’ next game is against the Road Warriors on Friday at Ninoy Aquino Stadium, a matchup that could temporarily determine the top seed in the final stretch of the eliminations.