Talk 'N Text coach Reyes concerned about team's short preparation

Talk 'N Text begins its defense of the PBA Commissioner's Cup crown opposite sister-team Meralco at the Astrodome in Pasay City. The Tropang Texters take on the Bolts in the first game of a Friday doubleheader at 5:15 p.m., marking the first time they will be playing competitively since retaining their Philippine Cup title by beating the Powerade Tigers in five games. The telecommunications franchise, however, started practicing for their title defense on Monday and the team's short preparation is a cause for concern for Texters coach Chot Reyes. "This is a game fraught with uncertainties," said Reyes. "We only had four practices with our import." Omar Samhan, a towering 23-year-old center out of St. Mary’s Gaels, is the Texters' reinforcement. Samhan, undrafted in the NBA but once suited up for the Dallas Mavericks' NBA Summer League team, will be pitted against Meralco's Jarrid Famous, who dropped 26 points and grabbed 17 rebounds in the Bolts' 105-83 rout of the Petron Boosters Wednesday night. Meralco coach Ryan Gregorio, however, hopes Famous and the rest of the Bolts still have the legs to compete against a team as talented as the Tropang Texters. The Bolts, since the import-laden conference opened on February 10, will be playing in their third straight game in seven days. "This is a very short tournament and every game matters. That's why we're treating each game like a playoff," said Bolts' coach Ryan Gregorio. The Bolts lost to league-leader B-MEG Llamados in their opening match, 96-93. Like Talk 'N Text, Philippine Cup finalist Powerade will also make its Commissioner’s Cup debut against Rain or Shine. Coach Bo Perasol is hoping that the Tigers could play in the same way that put the team back in the finals against  Talk 'N Text in the season-opening conference. Powerade had an impressive runner-up finish in the All-Filipino tournament, its best since the 2003 season. "We have to be careful not to put to waste whatever gains we have achieved last conference. The reality is we have to battle every game. We had our best performance that time only because we fought hard and we struggled as one," said Perasol. Dwayne Jones is tasked to carry the load for the Tigers against the Elasto Painters in the 7:30 p.m. encounter. Jones is an NBA veteran having played for the Boston Celtics, Minnesota Timberwolves, Orlando Magic, Cleveland Cavaliers, Charlotte Bobcats, Toronto Raptors and the Phoenix Suns. The Elasto Painters, who dropped a 109-102 decision against the Alaska Aces, are expecting a better showing from import Duke Crews. "We expect better cohesion given more time to practice with our import," said Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao. "We did not step up defensively the last game. It also gets frustrating when we can't convert shots we expect to make. It's a short elims so its important to recover quickly after our loss." — JVP, GMA News