MAKE OR BREAK
Alaska takes a last shot at the playoffs as it plays a make-or-break game versus a Barangay Ginebra San Miguel side chasing a spot in the best-of-three quarterfinals at the close of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup elimination round at the Smart Araneta Coliseum Wednesday.
The Aces and the Gin Kings slug it out in the last game of the elims at 7 p.m. with Alaska chasing the last berth in the Final Eight.
A loss will have the Aces yielding the last quarters slot to the GlobalPort Batang Pier.
For Barangay Ginebra, at stake in the contest is sixth seeding in the playoffs.
A loss will relegate the Kings down to seventh or eighth – a precarious spot that will pit them against a team with a twice-to-beat advantage in the quarterfinals.
Thus, it’s a virtual knockout setto for both the Aces and the Kings.
Because of an inferior quotient, the Aces can’t afford to fall in a tie with the Batang Pier, the Kia Carnival and the San Miguel Beermen from eighth to 11th at 4-7.
In that eventuality, GlobalPort will complete the playoff cast, joining Rain or Shine, Talk n Text, Purefoods, Meralco, NLEX, Ginebra and Barako Bull.
The top two play the worst two, with the higher seeds enjoying a twice-to-beat incentive. The four middle-of-the-pack finishers figure in a pair of best-of-three quarters series.
The Kings ride the momentum of a 96-81 whipping of the Batang Pier in playing the Aces, who, on the other hand, are coming off a 93-101 loss to the Talk n Text Tropang Texters in a highly emotional battle.
Odds are on Ginebra’s side because of its healthier lineup.
But despite injuries to a number of players, the Aces are expected to do what it takes to salvage the game.
They will try to avoid the fate of San Miguel – taking an unceremonious exit after winning the Philippine Cup crown.
The Aces hope to stay alive and on track to matching or surpassing their runner-up finish in the all-Filipino tourney. (SB)
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