Pinoyliga Cup Finals Primer: Mapua tangles with JRU in the 35UP

  • Jul 05, 2019
  • BASKETBALL
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To wrap up the Pinoyliga Cup Finals on Saturday, it will be an all NCAA clash as Mapua-Greasemonkey and JRU-Ronin meet for the Championship in the 35 and Above Division.

The pair from Group A swept aside their Group B counterparts in the semifinals to set up their title game, in which there are a lot to tell about their matchup.

First of all: Yes they have met before in the eliminations: Mapua defused JRU with a 32-point beatdown last April 27. 

Kaizer John Galvez lit up Shaw with his 37-point outburst, the Cards were too much for those Bombers as they let it rain from downtown, hitting 15/19 from beyond the arc.

That game was vital as it secured the top spot in their group ahead of the cross-over playoffs, where they survived an upset attempt by Ateneo-Largo and then went on to beat a Lou Gatumbato-powered Don Bosco in the Final Four.

For JRU, it dropped them to 2-2 at the end of the elims, but it did not matter as they dispatch Letran Barbaros in the quarters and top seeded San Beda in the semis.

The Match Up: Galvez vs Kong

The stats freaks of both teams will duke it out for the biggest game of their lives as they go head to head in this match up. We already knew Galvez hit for 37 in their previous tiff with JRU, but it was just part of his showcase in which he was the third leading scorer with 24.5 points per game as he shot 40% from beyond the arc.

On the other hand, Kong was not in sight in their first three games (including their embarrassing loss to Mapua) but he was on a tear in the past four games, leading his team in scoring each of the time while bagging three player of the game honors. He averaged 23.75 per game on a 67% clip as he lead all players in Player Efficiency Rating (PER).

Any Takers?

Throw the stats out of the window. It will not matter anymore it will be a battle of attrition between Mapua and JRU. Safe to say, with the timely arrival of Kong, JRU were given a shot in the arm to try and get the sweetest revenge in the best possible time.