Alaska, Barako Bull go all out to enhance playoff chances

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One good win deserves a fitting follow-up and both Alaska and Barako Bull know that.

In this case, however, much more is at stake so expect the Aces and Energy to go all out and try to outplay each other in their collision Saturday in the Smart Bro-PBA Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

A win by Alaska, which is coming off a 103-97 victory over erstwhile streaking San Miguel Beer, would push it at least into a share of the lead with the defending champion and perhaps Rain or Shine should the latter prevail over NLEX later in the evening.

The Elasto Painters have the inside track in case of such a three-way tie, having beaten both the Aces and the Beermen, and would be rewarded with the top seeding.

A playoff for second spot would then ensue between Alaska and SMB for the last automatic semifinals berth.

Should Barako reprise the fiery form it displayed in a 101-83 win over Star last Sunday and pull off an upset, however, the Aces would be relegated to third while the Energy would enhance their chances of inclusion among the top six.

In the first stage of the quarterfinals, teams ranked third to sixth are rewarded a twice-to-beat advantage over their counterparts belonging to the lower bracket of the 10-team field.

Outwardly, Barako coach Koy Banal is not one to dwell on where his team winds up in the next round, however. In fact, he is more concerned with his team’s continuous improvement and he believes it is an area where Alaska, with its patented pressure defense, could help bring about.

“We don’t want to think that we have a chance to get the twice-to-beat advantage because we believe that whatever the outcome is we’re going to gain something out of tomorrow’s game,” stated Banal.
“Alaska will help us prepare for the playoffs.”

Barako’s present game anchored mostly on its guards has already impressed Alaska coach Alex Compton.

“Barako has really been playing excellent basketball and my respect for them is very high,” he said.

“I think coach Koy Banal has done an amazing job and created a system that suits his players and he has developed an atmosphere that they are all enjoying,” added Compton.

Still, whatever polishing Barako is hoping for in its game would have to be done minus RR Garcia, who is out with a dislocated shoulder. Instead, Josh Urbiztondo, Willy Wilson, JC Intal and Mick Pennisi would be carrying most of the load for the Energy as they did in the Star game.

Alaska also was superb against SMB, allowing June Mar Fajardo to scrape for 43 points and 20 rebounds but holding most of the other Beermen to sub-par performances.

Without any such 6-10 behemoth to contend with in the Barako camp, the Aces should live up to their pre-game billing as favorite.

Such expectations could go completely awry as far as Compton is concerned, however. “We will have to work on both sides of the ball for 48 minutes if we want to be successful,” he said. (NC)

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