Dream rematch or is it year of dark horses?

MANILA, Philippines – Dream rematch between grand slam winners San Miguel Beer and Alaska Milk or a curious showdown between dark horses Rain or Shine and Globalport.

It could also be Junmar Fajardo versus the super duo of Terrence Romeo and Stanley Pringle or a gung-ho battle between the Aces and the Elasto Painters.

Whichever, an exciting finale is in the horizon or what awaits the Smart Bro PBA Philippine Cup Final Four which finally unfolds tomorrow at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

The Aces and the Batang Pier take center stage first with the opener of their best-of-seven series at 7 p.m. tomorrow. The Beermen and the Elasto Painters open their own semis playoff also at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the same venue.

As the higher seeds, San Miguel and Alaska are fancied to roll past their respective rivals and arrange a repeat of their classic all-Filipino finale last year.

If ever, it would be a third SMB-Alaska championship confrontation, having also figured in a title match in the last Governors Cup.

But the Beermen and the Aces are the first to say that they can’t discount the chances of Rain or Shine and Globalport – the former aching to win a first Philippine Cup crown and the latter a multi-titled team in the amateurs determined to join the ranks of champions in the pro league.

SMB coach Leo Austria notes the character and consistency of the Elasto Painters, the only team which made the Final Four of each conference last season.

Rain or Shine has actually been a consistent contender since the arrival of coach Yeng Guiao, winning a breakthrough championship in the 2012 Governors Cup and back to the finals once in 2013, twice in 2014 and once last year.

“They really can’t be taken for granted. They can compete and beat any team at any given time,” said Austria.

Another cause for concern for the Beermen is the return of Rain or Shine all-star guard Paul Lee.

For Guiao, the main concern is how to contain Fajardo and at the same time how to neutralize SMB gunners Marcio Lassiter, Alex Cabagnot, Chris Lutz, Ronald Tubid and Arwind Santos.

The Elasto Painters, chasing a third Philippine Cup finals appearance in four years, will be picking their poison.

Meanwhile, the Aces and the Batang Pier, both flourishing in a sleek running game, engage in a virtual track meet.

Alaska’s advantage is its taller and more experienced frontline crew while Globalport clearly has the edge on the backcourt with amazing guards Romeo and Pringle – and even Joseph Yeo.

“Defending Stanley and Terrence one-on-one is a real issue for us. On the other side, we’ve got guys who can score inside. I think their bigs are hardworking, but Sonny and Eric pose problems for them. It is two distinctly different teams and both teams pose separate problems for each other,” said Alaska coach Alex Compton.

“They shoot a higher volume of threes and have the ball on their hands a longer time. We run a motion offense where guys move a lot and we throw the ball inside a lot. I think it’s oversimplifying it, but I know our defense will be incredibly challenged,” Compton also said.

Globalport coach Pido Jarencio said it’s no secret that Pringle and Romeo will be their aces against the Aces.

“They are the biggest reasons why we are here, and we will again ask them to take us to the championship (playoffs),” Jarencio said. “The only difference is in the way I will play them (in the series), I have to be able to manage their minutes.

“We are all new in playing in a series this long. That’s why it is important for the coaching staff to be able to keep them fresh the entire time.”