Beermen, Gin Kings, Painters, Tropang Giga eye strong semis starts

Games Wednesday (PhilSports Arena)
5 p.m. – San Miguel vs Ginebra (Semifinals Game 1)
7:30 – Rain or Shine vs TNT (Semifinals Game 1)

MANILA, Philippines – In a best-of-seven tussle that could potentially go the full distance and be a back-and-forth, setting the tone early is of paramount importance.

So expect the four competitors in the Season 49 PBA Governors’ Cup semifinals to jump out of the gates with purpose in Wednesday's series openers at the PhilSports Arena.

TNT, the defending champion, and Rain or Shine, the hungry aspirant, fight for the 1-0 running start at 7:30 p.m.; while Barangay Ginebra, the runner-up of the last GC wars two seasons ago, and San Miguel Beer, the last to crack the F4, seek the same at 5 p.m.

For the Tropang Giga, there’s a revenge factor in play as it was the youth-laden but fast-maturing Elasto Painters who sent them off early in the playoffs of the previous conference. ROS wiped out TNT’s 1-0 lead in the Philippine Cup’s best-of-three quarterfinals with a reverse sweep capped by a 110-109 squeaker to come away with the F4 berth.

That heartbreaker, according to Tropang Giga coach Chot Reyes, essentially led them to shift their orientation into a more defensive-focused one. And now this shot-stopping skill will be fully tested by the Elasto Painters, who have emerged as an efficient offensive crew this conference.

“(It’s) A battle of contrasts. The No. 1 defensive team (TNT) versus the No. 1 in offense (ROS),” Reyes told The STAR of this matchup. “If we can limit their scoring, we have a chance.” 

The Elasto Painters were good for an average of 112.2 points in the elims. However, this went down to 100.4 markers in their five-game duel with Magnolia in the quarterfinals.

TNT was tops in points allowed at 87 in the elims then maintained this form in holding NLEX to 95.5 over four matches in the Last 8. At the same time, the Tropang Giga have cranked up their offense, going from 94.5 in group play to 107.8 in the playoffs.

The Tropang Giga’s transformation, according to Reyes, was the result of the likes of Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Calvin Oftana, RR Pogoy, Rey Nambatac and veterans Jayson Castro and Kelly Williams buying into their new approach.

Coach Yeng Guiao and his spirited bunch of Aaron Fuller, Jhonard Clarito, Adrian Nocum, Andre Caracut and Beau Belga go to battle with a more refreshed TNT opponent merely four days after finishing off the Hotshots in a sudden death, 103-93.

It's the same for the June Mar Fajardo and EJ Anosike-led Beermen, who are only three days separate from their grueling five-match series with Converge that was settled only last Sunday, 109-105.

In contrast, Tim Cone’s troops led by Justin Brownlee, Scottie Thompson, Japeth Aguilar and Stephen Holt had the luxury of a nine-day turnaround time due to their 3-0 sweep of Meralco.

"I can't think of a tougher opponent than San Miguel and June Mar Fajardo. They are talented and their coaching staff gets the most out of their talent.  You can beat them once or twice, but beating them four times will be incredibly difficult," said Cone.

"Many are saying that our fresh legs can give us something of an edge and I hope they're right, but they are a deep team, so it's tough to wear them out. It should be a heck of a series."