ADJUSTMENT would be the name of the game when Blackwater and Rain or Shine tangle Sunday in the PBA Governors Cup at the MOA Arena.

Gametime is 4:30 p.m.

The Bossing are aching to cut short a three-game losing skein that dropped them to 1-4 while the Elasto Painters are in even more dire straits, having lost all their first four games.

“Kailangan na ng sense of urgency para hindi mapag-iwanan ng husto,” said Blackwater coach Ariel Vanguardia on the eve of the match.

“Kaya siguradong pukpukan ito dahil pareho lang halos kami ng sit’wasyon.”

In order to snap out of its funk, which was capped by a 116-108 loss to Barangay Ginebra last Sunday, Rain or Shine decided to replace import Michael Qualls with Greg Smith II.

In yet another short stint this time like when he first reinforced NorthPort in the 2019 edition of the same tourney, Qualls did not do so bad averages of 26.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.0 steals in 39.5 minutes. But head coach Yeng Guiao cited his lack of chemistry with the local E-Painters.

Since arriving to the country last Thursday, Smith has joined the Rain or Shine practices, but Vanguardia pointed out that Smith immediately gelling with his new teammates should take some time.

“‘Yun ang advantage namin sana,” said Vanguardia. “Kasi iyun din naging advantage ng Terrafirma sa amin, na ‘yung import nila naka-adjust na rin dito pero ‘yung sa amin hindi pa masyado. Sana kabila naman nag-a-adjust pa lang this time.”

Vanguardia was referring to the match against the Dyip last Thursday, when the Bossing paraded new import Troy Williams but eventually lost to their Jordan Williams-led foes, 106-119.

Troy Williams did make a splash in his PBA debut, netting 55 points and 14 rebounds. But he launched 34 shots and went only 4-for-13 from deep, while also assisting only five times while committing nine turnovers.

“Nag-adjust lang ako ng konti sa import. Mahiyain pang pumasa, e,” offered Vanguardia, before laying out his basic gameplan.

“Kailangan wala silang local na maka-20 points and ‘yung import nila specialty noon depensa kaya siguradong kukunin din import namin,” offered Vanguardia. “So kailangan ready mga locals ko and ‘yung import namin would go to his strength na hindi outside shooting kundi attacking the basket.”