San Miguel Beer and Pop Cola also play an important game, disputing the go-ahead victory in their own best-of-five semifinals series, but Ginebra is getting much of the attention, with the La Tondeña ballclub looking poised to sweep Shell on its way to the PBA All-Filipino Cup best-of-seven title playoff.
Action shifts to the Araneta Coliseum with even bigger gate sales expected following the first two playdates of the semis both played before a sell-out crowd at the smaller Philsports Arena.
The Beermen and the Panthers clash in the 4:15 p.m. opener before the Kings seek the three-game sweep of the Turbochargers at 6:30.
If the Turbochargers still fail to find an answer to Ginebra’s renewed gung-ho spirit, it could well be all over for them in this conference which they ruled in 1999. Meanwhile, Allan Caidic will get his first finals appearance as a coach, Jun Limpot will brace for his first ever Big Dance as a pro and Mark Caguioa will get a shot at a championship in his very first conference in the league.
All three have practically ruled out the possibility of their crack at the finals being foiled by Shell.
"Amin na siguro ito dahil mahihirapan na sila na talunin kami ng three straight games. All we have to do is to try to continue what we’re doing. We’ll not think of the sweep but just keep our focus on the game," said Caidic, many times a member of a champion team as a player but still in search of a first title as coach.
"Ang tagal ko nang inaasam na makalaro sa finals. Eto na ang malaking pagkakataon. Siguro hindi na ito makakawala," said Limpot, a player who has so many championships won in the amateurs but not even a finals stint in the pros.
Since the post-elims playoff format was introduced in the league in 1993 and institutionalized in 1999, not a single team has ever come back from a 0-2 deficit to win a best-of-five semifinals series. But curiously, two teams have returned from a 0-2 deficit to win a best-of-five finals, with Crispa doing the trick versus Toyota in the 1975 Third Conference and Purefoods duplicating the feat versus Alaska in the 1990 Third Conference. Incidentally, Baby Dalupan steered both teams to those come-from-behind wins.
Shell coach Perry Ronquillo admitted they’re now in a deep hole but stressed they are not yet quitting, saying they will make Ginebra work hard to gain the finals.
"Pwedeng makuha nga nila ito, pero papahirapan namin sila," said Ronquillo.