SMB – ALASKA RETURN ENGAGEMENT FEB. 17
To those who have not had enough of the San Miguel Beer – Alaska showdown, Feb. 17 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum is the event to watch.
The San Miguel Beermen and the Alaska Aces have played three games each when they clash in their elimination-round tussle in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup three weeks from now.
The Aces make their second conference debut versus the Purefoods Star Hotshots on Feb. 3, take on the NLEX Warriors on Feb. 7 then the GlobalPort Batang Pier on Feb. 10 before meeting the Beermen in what could well be a highly anticipated rematch.
The Beermen prime up for that grudge battle as they tangle with the Kia Carnival on Feb. 4, the Ginebra Kings on Feb. 8 and the Blackwater Elite on Feb. 11.
Still uncertain are the imports they will bring along in that match to watch following their dramatic, thrilling Philippine Cup title showdown that boiled down to the last second and last shot in a do-or-die Game Seven.
Alaska import DJ Convington is reportedly still under evaluation as he appears much smaller than the other imports.
The question is can he match up with the seven-footer imports of Kia Motors, Blackwater and Barako Bull and tested imports Mike Dunigan of Barangay Ginebra and Richard Howell of Talk n Text.
The Beermen have a great prospect in Arinze Onuaku but are still unsure on whether they can have the former Syracuse star come over as at least six NBA teams have expressed interest to sign the player.
But whoever the two teams tag along, the Beermen and the Aces can only be expected to slug it out in another fierce battle.
Like in the Philippine Cup, the Beermen and the Aces along with the Gin Kings, the Talk n Text Tropang Texters, the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters and the Purefoods Star Hotshots are fancied to figure prominently in the race for spots in the Finals.
For Kia and Blackwater, wins may start coming as they enjoy the advantage of playing with giants of imports in 7-foot-3 Peter John Ramos and seven-foot Chris Charles, respectively.
Other imports set to strut their stuffs in the tourney are Solomon Alabi for Barako Bull, CJ Leslie for GlobalPort, Josh Davis for Meralco, Al Thornton for NLEX, Daniel Orton for Purefoods, and Rick Jackson for Rain or Shine.
The format of the Commissioner’s Cup is a little shorter than the Philippine Cup with only the top eight teams after the one-round-robin elimination phase advancing to the playoffs.
The top two teams enjoy a twice-to-beat advantage versus the No. 7 and No. 8 teams. The third-ranked team collides with No. 6 while the fourth seed clashes with No. 5 in a pair of best-of-three series.
The last four figure in best-of-five semifinal playoffs with the winner slugging it out in a best-of-seven titular showdown. (SB)
Subscribe to INQUIRER PLUS to get access to The Philippine Daily Inquirer & other 70+ titles, share up to 5 gadgets, listen to the news, download as early as 4am & share articles on social media. Call 896 6000.