The Thunder and the Phone Pals seek a win that will assure them of at least a tie for the No. 4 slot in the standings at the close of the eliminations as they take on the Alaska Aces and the Barangay Ginebra Kings in a crucial twinbill at the Araneta Coliseum.
Mobiline clashes with Ginebra at 4:15 p.m. then Red Bull collides with Alaska at 6:30 p.m. with the Phone Pals and the Thunder both looking for their sixth win in seven outings.
But Mobiline and Red Bull should expect tough challenges from their rivals which are both determined to pump life into their sagging bids.
With a 4-2 win-loss card, Alaska is hard-pressed to keep its own streak to have a good shot at a slot in the Top Four while Ginebra, at 1-5, must start winning now if it were to avoid missing the quarterfinals.
The Aces have actually climbed to the Magic Four following three straight victories over the San Miguel Beermen, the Pop Cola Panthers and the Gin Kings.
The Kings, meanwhile, have remained on a slump although they had cut the services of original import Roy Hammonds, replacing him with Brian Green.