The Philippine Patriots might miss two key players when they take on the Singapore Slingers in what is expected to be a defensive-oriented match this Saturday in the ASEAN Basketball League at The Arena in San Juan City.

Coach Louie Alas revealed that center Nonoy Baclao and point guard Christian Coronel are doubtful starters in their 4 p.m. encounter with the Slingers as both are still recuperating from hamstring injuries.

While Coronel’s spot will be filled in by Froilan Baguion and Warren Ybanez, the possible absence of the 6-foot-4 Baclao could be a key factor.

“Nonoy wants to play on Saturday but we’ll have to assess his condition tomorrow (Friday),” said Alas.

Baclao, who was key in Ateneo’s second straight UAAP crown, made his debut two weeks ago, firing seven points, hauling down five rebounds and swatting five blocks to the delight of the hometown crowd.

Hoping to exact their 74-69 loss in their second game of the season, Alas plans to make the game a battle of attrition by employing a full-court press against the Slingers, who were coming off a convincing 96-72 rout of Satria Muda BritAma last Sunday.

“They paralyzed the Indons (Satria Muda BritAma) with their full court press last Sunday, so we plan to use that same strategy against them. That’s the only way we can beat them,” Alas said.  “We have to be patient on the defensive end.”

Singapore currently leads the six-nation pro league with a perfect 4-0 record while the Patriots are at 3-1.