Derby Ace, RoS force playoff

MANILA, Philippines - A double playoff will be necessary to determine placings in the PBA Fiesta Conference double-round elimination phase.

B-MEG Derby Ace forced a playoff with San Miguel Beer for the second outright semifinal berth while Rain or Shine got a crack versus Barangay Ginebra for the last automatic quarters slots at the close of the elims last night at the Araneta Coliseum.

Cliff Brown played big in their pivotal game against Barako Energy Coffee, pouring in a personal conference high of 43 points that went with 20 rebounds as the Llamados ousted the Coffee Masters, 106-100, to catch up with the Beermen at second place at 13-5.

Earlier, Rod Nealy got a near triple-double job to follow up a 41-point game two nights ago as Rain or Shine topped Coca-Cola, 101-90, to get a playoff shot at No. 5.

The Tigers settled for a spot in the wildcards while the Coffee Masters failed to make the post-elims play for the fourth straight conference.

Barako ended up with a 6-30 record in the season -- the worst in franchise history.

“I thought we played well in the last six games. Unfortunately, it’s not enough for us to secure the No. 2 spot. But for as long as we have a shot at it, we’ll surely go for it,” said Derby Ace coach Ryan Gregorio.

“We beat San Miguel in the second round but it’s not like we just have to show up and it’s a guaranteed win for us. I still believe San Miguel and Talk n Text possess the best talents in the league. What’s going with us is that we play solid basketball as a team. That’s what we did in our last six games,” Gregorio added.

Nealy, proving to be the right fit for RoS, churned out 26 points, 17 rebounds and seven assists to lead the Elasto Painters past the Tigers and into a playoff match with the Barangay Ginebra Kings Friday.

PBA commissioner Ranauld “Sonny” Barrios announced the league is not holding games Wednesday in deference to the presidential inauguration.

“Rod Nealy’s doing the scoring and rebounding since his arrival. When we had Jai (Lewis), we’re playing halfcourt game. With Nealy, we’re playing with a quicker pace. We’re running and we’re doing well,” said Rain or Shine coach Caloy Garcia.

“Against Coke, we did a good job in rebounding. That’s your only chance against them. And the nice thing is that we didn’t rely just on a single guy. The guys worked as a team,” Garcia added.