AFTER a 10-day break from live action, the defending PBA Philippine Cup champions San Miguel Beermen return, battling the Meralco Bolts in the main game of the final playdate in 2016 of the league today at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City.

Set for 7 p.m., the Beermen (4-1), who was last seen in action in an out-of-town game against the NLEX Road Warriors in Cagayan de Oro on Dec. 17, will try to maintain their winning ways and keep hold of the top spot in the standings while adding to the struggles of the Bolts (2-3), losers of their last two assignments.

ROUGH patches have their way of putting things in perspective, so learned the Blackwater Elite in the ongoing PBA Philippine Cup.

Sent back to earth with back-to-back losses after winning their first two matches in the season-opening Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) tournament, the young PBA franchise said it is something it has to learn from while putting premium on playing team ball.

“Going back to our basics and play hard basketball are very important for us,” said Blackwater coach Leo Isaac following their 96-85 victory last week over the NLEX Road Warriors that put them back on the winning track.

THE Rain or Shine Elastopainters play their former coach Yeng Guiao and the NLEX Road Warriors in the PBA Philippine Cup main game today set for 7 p.m. at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.

It will mark the first time that the E-Painters will face their erstwhile head bench tactician after Mr. Guiao left the team to take the helm over at NLEX.

For Rain or Shine, their debut match against Mr. Guiao will be an emotional game and they are expecting it to be a big challenge since the veteran coach is “familiar” with the kind of system it runs.

To be held at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, the Kings, the champions in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Governors’ Cup last season, are out to improve on their underperforming 1-2 record so far, which partly they blame on the long gaps they have had in between games.

Citing their inability to establish some momentum with the weeklong breaks they have been having, the Kings have seen their campaign go up and down.

They opened their Philippine Cup bid with a loss to the TNT KaTropa, 108-103, on Nov. 27 before winning over the Rain or Shine Elastopainters, 81-74, on Dec. 4.

Taking advantage of his familiarity of the court, Jonathan Grey gave Meralco the lift it badly needed on Wednesday.

Returning to the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan, the same floor where he made his lore in St. Benilde in the NCAA, the 24-year-old had himself going, unleashing 20 of his 24 points in the second half.

Collapsing in the endgame, there was no doubt in coach Norman Black’s mind where Meralco failed to deliver in its game against Alaska on Wednesday: free-throw shooting.

“It was a tough loss. If you’re up by nine with four minutes to go, you should win the basketball game, but we missed a lot of foul shots tonight and didn’t make the plays when we needed it,” he said, after the Bolts’ 81-79 defeat to the Aces.

CURRENTLY at solo second place in the ongoing PBA Philippine Cup, GlobalPort Batang Pier try to go a notch higher and claim a share of the top spot as they take on Blackwater Elite in league action today at the FilOil Flying V Center in San Juan City.

Set for 7 p.m., the Batang Pier (3-1) are out to win back-to-back after tumbling previously while also tying defending champions San Miguel Beermen (4-1) for early leadership in the season-opening Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) tournament.

Leading GlobalPort in the Philippine Cup is All-Star guard Terrence Romeo, who has his guns blazing with an average of 27 points per game to go along with five assists and 1.75 steals.

THE rampaging Meralco Bolts look to gain a piece of the tournament lead but they will be tested when they battle the resurgent Alaska Aces.

The Bolts go for a third consecutive victory at the resumption of the 2016-17 Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup. The Bolts (2-1) can continue their move up the ladder when they test rejuvenated Alaska (1-2) 7 p.m. at the Smart Araneta Coliseum tonight.

Earlier, two skidding teams in the Blackwater Elite and the NLEX Road Warriors aim to arrest their slides when they take the floor at 4:15 p.m. in the appetizer.