Burger King proceeds with campaign without Arboleda

After Japeth Aguilar, Burger King now tries to put behind the incident involving Wynne Arboleda. Without their main defensive man and starting point guard, the Whopper battle heavyweight but winless San Miguel Beer, while Talk ‘N Text and Sta. Lucia Realty gun for a share of the lead in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum Wednesday.

Burger King found itself on unfamiliar grounds when the PBA suspended Arboleda for the rest of the season for mauling a fan last Friday. Arboleda is the only remaining player from the original FedEx club that joined the league in 2002. But even in the absence of the two-time Defensive Player of the Year, the Whopper are still convinced they can put up a good fight. “No matter what, we will survive," said Burger King coach Yeng Guiao. Burger King, however, is coming off a huge win – a 115-105 victory over Smart-Gilas last Friday in a game where the Whopper collided with Aguilar, the player it picked No. 1 in the draft only to trade him after one game. The Whopper will be facing a team that’s considered as the most talented this season, although the Beermen have yet to score a victory after two games. San Miguel, the Fiesta Conference champion, lost to Ginebra (98-86) and then dropped an 85-74 decision to Alaska in an out-of-town game in Panabo, Davao del Norte last Saturday. “What’s been hurting us the last two games is our turnovers," said SMB coach Siot Tanquingcen. “That is something we need to address. And yes, we understand Burger King is dangerous, we need to play hard." The Beermen committed a combined 43 turnovers in their first two games of the season, unable to showcase the type of chemistry they used to have. They, too, have been struggling from the perimeter, going 0-for-15 against Ginebra and 3-for-17 against Alaska in three-point shots. Defending champion Talk ‘N Text and Sta. Lucia Realty, meantime, shoot for 2-0 (win-loss) records when they take on separate opponents. The Tropang Texters take on Smart-Gilas in the opener of another triple-header at 2:30 p.m. while the Realtors square off with Rain or Shine at 7 p.m. “Big test, I am sure they will play much better this time," said TNT coach Chot Reyes. The Texters opened their drive to become the first team to repeat as all-Filipino champions in 25 years with an 85-76 win over the Elasto Painters, getting everyone involved in scoring while holding down the run-and-gun enemy to only 35 percent shooting from the field (31-for-88). The Realtors, too, will be hoping to come up with a follow-up victory after their surprisingly easy 95-76 triumph over Coca-Cola last week. - GMANews.TV