For The Meralco Bolts, Outcome Of Ryukyu Golden Kings-Taoyuan Pauian Pilots Game Matters
The Meralco Bolts await the results between the EASL Ryukyu Golden Kings vs Taoyuan Pauian Pilots on Wednesday in Okinawa. Taoyuan Pilots are currently the leaders in EASL's Group B, while the Ryukyu Golden Kings are currently on a three-game winning streak after beating the winless Macau Black Bears on January 21.
A win in Okinawa versus the Ryukyu Golden King will book them a ticket to the EASL Finals. For Ryukyu, though, the Golden Kings need to not just win at home against the Taoyuan Pilots, they need to win by a huge margin due to the quotient system is in place for tiebreakers in the EASL.
The game on February 4 has a lot of implications for the Meralco Bolts. Meralco is also on a three-game winning streak, like the Ryukyu Golden Kings, whom they'll play on February 11, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
"We just have to wait for the result to know exactly what we need to do on Wednesday. If Ryukyu loses, then we need only to win, but to say only to win against Ryukyu is a tough proposition," said the Meralco Bolts' active consultant, coach Nenad Vucinic. "So we're just focusing on ourselves and not looking at the score. Once we find out the exact number we need to win by, then we’ll focus on that."
The addition of Justin Brownlee was one of the key factors for the Meralco Bolts' three-game winning streak but at the cost of losing Rondae Hollis-Jefferson due to a knee injury he suffered during their game against the Macau Black Bears on December 6, 2025.
"He [Rondae Hollis-Jefferson] was a big part of our team, and he was part of our three wins, and losing a player like that, it's very difficult for the team," the Serbian coach said. "But it's much more difficult for him to deal with it, the serious injury that he had."
Albeit the outcome of the Ryukyu Golden Kings-Taoyuan Pilots game in Okinawa, the Meralco Bolts' post season hopes in the EASL are on the line on February 11.
"If they [Ryukyu Golden Kings] do lose, that means we have to win to qualify, but again, we cannot think about that," coach Nenad Vucinic stressed.