A lot is at stake when the climax of the 2016 Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner’s Cup elimination round goes in full swing.
The race for the Top 8 now boils down to a single game as Star and Mahindra, tied for eighth place at the moment with similar 4-6 marks, battle each other for the last berth in the quarterfinals at 4:15 p.m. at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The winner will head on to the next phase and will gain the No. 8 ranking while the loser will join GlobalPort, Phoenix and Blackwater in an early vacation as it will be booted out directly.
Two hours prior, an equally important fight occurs as current front-runner Meralco (8-2) attempts to put a lock as the overall top seed heading into the quarters when it plays Barangay Ginebra (6-4), who also needs a victory, at 7 p.m. in the nightcap.
Expect the Hotshots and the Enforcers to go all out as they fight for their lives.
Both teams have been inconsistent in the tournament but a golden opportunity to enter the next round still looms.
All the Bolts need to do is top Ginebra to claim the top ranking outright. Should they lose, they will have to wait for the result of the last game of second placer San Miguel (7-3) to see if they will be No. 1 or No. 2.
If the Beermen win their final assignment and Meralco loses to Ginebra, they will be tied at the top and San Miguel will automatically get the top seed via the winner-over-the-other rule.
Either way, Meralco is already guaranteed of a top two finish and a twice-to-beat advantage in the next round.
Still, Meralco coach Norman Black wants to gain even more with this last game of his squad in the eliminations.
“We definitely want to win our last game to game momentum for the playoffs,” he said. “We have Ginebra as our last game and whoever we face in the quarterfinals, bahala na.”
The Gin Kings need to win to secure that they will end up in the top six and avoid a twice-to-beat disadvantage in the quarters.
“The key for us is really getting in the top six to avoid any disadvantage,” said Ginebra coach Tim Cone.
Games today (Smart Araneta Coliseum)
4:15 p.m. – Star vs. Mahindra
7 p.m. – Barangay Ginebra vs. Meralco