Last ticket to PBA dance

A quirk in the rules dumped Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) All-Filipino Cup third placer Alaska into a pool of five "abandonados" fighting for a qualifying ticket to play in the Invitational Championships starting next Sunday.

The top five finishers in the All-Filipino double-round eliminations gained automatic passes as seeded entries in the 10-team Invitationals. The lucky qualifiers are Red Bull, San Miguel Beer, FedEx, Talk ‘N’ Text and Coca-Cola.

Among the five in the lower half of the standings, only Shell and Purefoods didn’t advance to the quarterfinals–they were eliminated outright. Alaska and Sta. Lucia Realty made it to the semifinals before exiting while Barangay Ginebra lost three straight games in the quarterfinals to bow out with a whimper.

It was PBA Commissioner Noli Eala’s idea to assemble the bottom five teams and pit them against each other in a single-round derby for a chance to see action in the Invitationals. Eala’s idea wasn’t only an innovation but a stroke of genius. The fans got a bonus from the "mini" tournament, a side attraction to the All-Filipino Cup Finals, as the five "also-rans" took in four more games in their schedule.

To put pressure on the five hopefuls, Eala ruled out playoffs in the event of ties at the end of the single-round eliminations. That meant each game would be crucial and since there loomed the possibility of applying the quotient system to break possible logjams, teams slugged it out until the final buzzer–the bigger the margins, the better.

As it turned out, Alaska broke away from the pack and is the only unbeaten team after three outings. The Aces survived two cliffhangers to emerge the hottest pick to claim the sixth PBA ticket to the Invitationals. They beat Shell, 80-78, crushed Purefoods, 99-79, then edged Sta. Lucia, 93-86, in overtime.

Out of contention are Purefoods (0-3), Sta. Lucia (1-2) and Shell (2-2).

Ginebra and Alaska are the only teams still in the running. They face off at the Cuneta Astrodome tonight in a "championship" duel to decide the last Invitationals qualifier.

Ginebra got off on the wrong foot, losing a 100-92 decision to the Realtors, but bounced back with a bang to scuttle Purefoods, 112-78, and blast the Turbo Chargers, 102-82. If the Gin Kings beat Alaska tonight, both teams will finish with identical 3-1 records. In the case of a two-way tie, the winner-over-the-other rule will apply so tonight’s game is the ultimate decider. If Alaska wins, the Aces book the ticket to the Invitationals. If Ginebra wins, the Kings advance.

For Ginebra coach Allan Caidic, the chance of vindication is a dream come true. He’s been unfairly pilloried by impatient Ginebra fans for failing to turn the Kings into overnight championship contenders. But what unforgiving fans can’t seem to realize is it will take some time before Ginebra finds the chemistry to get its house in order. Caidic brought in four rookies–Romel Adducul, Sunday Salvacion, Aris Dimaunahan and Rob Johnson–before the season and added another, Jeffrey Sanders, only a few weeks ago. He also made room for Estong Ballesteros, a sixth newcomer. The drug suspensions on Jun Limpot and Alex Crisano made things tougher. Blending the newcomers with the holdovers like Eric Menk, Mark Caguioa, and Bal David wasn’t easy either.

But Caidic is slowly beginning to fit the pieces in the puzzle. The back-to-back blowouts over Purefoods and Shell are a positive sign. Ginebra hadn’t won two in a row since opening the All-Filipino Cup on a high note five months ago.

Alaska coach Tim Cone is out to spoil Caidic’s plans. If there’s a team that’s capable of upending Ginebra, it’s Alaska. The Aces are deep in nearly every spot. John Arigo is enjoying a breakout season. Don Allado, Ali Peek and Mike Cortez are delivering consistent numbers. And there’s no taller player in the league than E. J. Feihl who’s blossoming in Cone’s system.

For Ginebra to win, the Kings must play as a team. Menk and Caguioa can’t go their separate ways. They’ve got to complement, not negate, each other. Without Limpot, leadership has become an issue. Who’ll take charge? David hasn’t scored in double figures in the last nine games and fans are wondering when the Flash will get back on track. Johnson had flashes of brilliance against Shell last Friday but the "Bulldog" is too raw to take over at point guard. With Menk and Caguioa begging for the ball on every possession, Ginebra’s quarterback must control the flow from the backcourt to keep things in order. That translates into asserting authority as Caidic’s alter ego on the floor.

What Caidic needs are more Adduculs in his team–stars willing to sacrifice their personal stats to play subdued roles for the greater good.

The script couldn’t be more climactic for an ending to the single-round eliminations. Alaska versus Ginebra–for the last ticket to the Invitationals in the final game of the qualifying tournament tonight.