Wild, wild finish looms for PBA q’finals berths

MANILA, Philippines - It will be two weeks of gut-wrenching run for berths to the next round.

Rain or Shine, Barangay Ginebra and six other teams are closely bunched together behind runaway leader San Miguel Beer heading into the homestretch of the PBA Philippine Cup eliminations, hinting at a tight race for seven remaining berths in the playoff round.

The elims phase of the all-Filipino tourney is down to 17 games that would prove crucial in the final reckoning for the playoff.

Only reigning back-to-back Philippine Cup champion San Miguel Beer has gained passage into the playoffs and, at 8-1 win-loss card, it has a clear shot of a top finish and a twice-to-beat incentive in the quarters.

Rain or Shine (5-3), GlobalPort (5-3) and Blackwater (5-4) have the edge over Alaska (4-4), Ginebra (4-4), Phoenix Petroleum (4-4), Star (4-4) and TNT KaTropa (4-4) as they make their final push for the quarterfinals.

Mahindra (2-5), NLEX (2-6) and Meralco (2-7) are all languishing in the bottom of the field.

Rain or Shine has kept its competitive form despite coach Yeng Guiao’s transfer to NLEX; GlobalPort has become a serious contender under coach Franz Pumaren while Blackwater thrives on the impressive stints of young players Mac Belo, Arthur dela Cruz, Kyle Pascual, John Pinto and Roi Sumang.  Curiously, elite teams Ginebra, Alaska, Star and TNT are battling it out in a heavy logjam from fifth to ninth spots with new ball club Phoenix Petroleum.

Only the top eight will make the playoffs with the top two enjoying twice-to-beat edges over  the last two while the four other teams figure in a pair of best-of-three quarters showdowns.

 “The playoffs have already started for us. Every game from here on is crucial for us and we need to bring a playoff mentality to each one,” said Ginebra coach Tim Cone.

The Kings  have the Elite, the Fuel Masters and the Road Warriors as their opponents in their last three games. They try to nail back-to-back wins in the tourney versus the Elite Friday at the Cuneta Astrodome.

“We’re still trying to climb our way back to contention. We have to keep moving, keep moving forward,” said Cone.

Alaska and TNT dropped to joint fifth following their losses to Blackwater and Star, respectively, Sunday night.

Errors and turnovers were  big factors in the Aces’ 100-103 loss to the Elite.

“We’re the worst in the league right now in turning the ball over. A lot of them are just being careless with it,” rued coach Alex Compton whose chargers are in virtual must-win situation in their last three games against Mahindra, Phoenix and Rain or Shine.

“I can’t go back in time. I wish I could. With three games left in the conference and everyone jockeying for position and San Miguel’s clearly on top, this (loss to Blackwater) could play out and we’re not going to make the playoffs,” Compton pointed out.

Meanwhile, TNT has lost an early buffer in dropping its last two games against NLEX and Star. The Texters are now hard-pressed to win their last three games against the Floodbusters, the Batang Pier and the Beermen.

Coach Nash Racela said it’s a question of desire although he admits the players are still adjusting to his system.

“From day one, I’ve been telling them that there would be changes. Change doesn’t happen overnight,” said Racela. “There’s still a lot of things that we need to correct up to this point.”

Star, back in contention after its crucial 88-77 win over TNT, pursues its bid against Blackwater, Meralco and Mahindra.