WHO will punch the last ticket to the quarterfinals?
Rain or Shine and Blackwater both want to do just that but only one of them will move forward in the post-season of the 2017 Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup.
The Painters and the Elite dispute the eighth and last spot available in the quarterfinals tonight as they figure in a playoff game for the No. 8 seed at 7 p.m. at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The two teams ended up tied at No. 8, both finishing with 5-6 records, after the elimination round.
The victor will complete the eight-team quarterfinals cast and will join top seed San Miguel Beer, Alaska, Star, TNT KaTropa, GlobalPort, Phoenix Petroleum and Barangay Ginebra there.
On the other hand, the loser will have an early vacation and join ousted squads NLEX, Meralco and Mahindra there.
It’ll be a tall task for whoever gets the last spot in the playoffs as it will take on dominant defending champion San Miguel Beer and will hold a twice-to-win disadvantage as well.
Rain or Shine actually started out the tournament very solidly before fading in the most crucial stretch.
The Elasto Painters spent a lot of time at second place early on but fell hard after losing their last four assignments.
The Elite also spent some time in the upper half of the ladder early on but lost steam as well.
Both are now in a must-win situation to salvage what’s left of their campaigns.
Rain or Shine wants to avoid missing the playoffs for the second straight conference while Blackwater aims for a probable second run in the quarterfinals in its history.
The Elasto Painters had a golden opportunity to book themselves the last seat in the next phase but failed to do so.
Last Wednesday night, all they needed to do was win against Alaska to avoid complications and it looked good when they led by seven points with three minutes left.
But the Painters faltered and eventually fell to the Aces, 89-94, in a tough loss as they are now in harm’s way.
The Elite’s last assignment was last week when it fell hard against Star, 111-95.