Semis anybody’s game, say coaches

Barangay Ginebra and San Miguel Beer will have fresh legs but Talk n Text and Red Bull have the momentum on their side as they start their battles in the Talk n Text PBA Philippine Cup Final Four at the Araneta Coliseum today.

It’s Ginebra versus Talk n Text and San Miguel against Red Bull with both promising to be a classic showdown.

All four teams have expressed guarded optimism in the best-of-seven semifinal series starting with the Beermen and Bulls clashing at 4:35 p.m. then the Kings and the Pals colliding at 7:20 p.m.

PBA watchers consider the Beermen the top favorite to go all the way to win the championship but coach Chot Reyes said they’re not yet looking beyond Red Bull.

"Red Bull is very dangerous. It will take your very best to get through this series," said Reyes.

"From the start, I said Red Bull and Purefoods are the teams to beat. They have the experience, ability and know-how to come together in this situation. We may have deep bench and talent. But games are won on the court and not on paper," Reyes added.

Red Bull coach Yeng Guiao, meanwhile, said his main concern is how to stop Danny Seigle.

"Wala kaming pangtapat kay Seigle. If we put a big guy on him, babagal kami. If we match up with him on quickness, liliit naman kami," said Guiao.

Besides that concern, Guiao believes they could well keep up with the Beermen every step of the way.

"I’m not really worried in terms of our capacity to stay with San Miguel. We’ve battled them before and we held our own. Olsen Racela and Danny Ildefonso were at their peak and we’re very young at the time. Our guys are now at the peak of their prowess," said Guiao, recalling their conquest of San Miguel in the 2001 Commissioner’s Cup finals.

Reyes said idleness in four weeks puts his team and Barangay Ginebra at a disadvantage position at the start of the series.

"We’re starting from scratch. No matter how hard we work in practice, we can’t simulate with the actual game," said Reyes.

The Kings, meanwhile, have possible rustiness and the absence of Eric Menk to worry about against a charged-up Talk n Text side. Menk is out for the rest of the tournament due to injuries.

Talk n Text coach Derrick Pumaren, however, said the Kings remain a formidable team without Menk.

"They have the height, quickness and court savvy even minus Eric Menk," said Pumaren.

Talk n Text swept Ginebra in two games in the classification round but Pumaren stressed records will no longer come into play in this series.