Kings, Giants leave for Dubai tomorrow

Barangay Ginebra and Purefoods leave for Dubai tomorrow, itching to bring their act to the oil-rich emirate and flaunt their talent and skills before an expected huge overseas Filipino crowd in an official Talk n Text-PBA Fiesta Cup encounter at the Al-Ahli Sports Club on Friday.

Even without the injured Eric Menk and Johnny Abarrientos, the Kings remain in top form, winning six of their last seven games to gain a share of the top spot with a 6-2 (win-loss) record.

But the struggling Giants, toting a 3-5 mark, are unfazed of the crowd favorites.

"Hopefully, this will be our first step in climbing up the ladder. We are working hard to play consistently, and hopefully, we’ll be able to get out of the rut," said Purefoods coach Ryan Gregorio.

The Giants are currently in the lower half of the standings although they’ve began to turn things around ever since import Marquin Chandler suited up, posting a 3-2 record in their last five outings.

Made possible by the organizing Filipino basketball center led by chairman Ramon Pizzaras and assisted by former PBA player Ric Roces, the Dubai encounter is the featured out-of-the country game of the season-ending conference.