No-holds-barred tiffs await Big Four today

The PBA All-Filipino Cup semifinal round finally comes off the wraps today with the "Big Four" — all highly-motivated — all raring to get the decisive headstart in the race for the championship of the league’s most prestigious tourney.

San Miguel and Pop Cola take the floor first at 5:15 p.m., then Ginebra and Shell at 7:30, each one hoping to jumpstart their bids on a night the Philsports Arena is likely to be filled to the rafters.

All of the four believe they can’t afford to relax in the short best-of-five series, thus each one vows to step up their game right from the start of the two matchups which may both turn out an April thriller.

The Beermen and the Turbochargers loom as the slight favorites over the Panthers and the Kings, but coaches Jong Uichico of San Miguel and Perry Ronquillo of Shell believe they have a tough task at hand versus their respective rivals.

Uichico, who always tries to downplay his chances, is even giving Pop Cola an equal chance although the Beermen swept the Panthers in two games by an average margin of more than 10 points in the eliminations.

"Their spirit is at an all-time high. The intensity level of their game at the moment is more than 100 percent, kaya nakakatakot silang kalaban," said Uichico.

Neither Ronquillo feels comfortable against the Kings although No. 5 Ginebra is the lowest-ranked team in the playoffs which made it to the semis.

"I think we have the advantage in height but still I feel they can match up with us. They have good inside operators and, of course, they have good outside shooters," said Ronquillo.

In their lone duel in the eliminations, Shell needed a big lift curiously from an unhealthy Gerry Esplana in posting a 75-68 decision over Ginebra. The veteran guard was smarting from a dislocated shoulder in leading the Turbochargers in that victory.

Coaches Allan Caidic of Ginebra and Chot Reyes of Pop Cola, meanwhile, feel they will be the sentimental favorites with their teams both aching to end a slump.

"The team has long been without a championship. Now that we’ve got a chance to gain a crack at it, we’ll try our best not to bungle it. Sana hindi makuntento ang mga players na umabot sa semis even without a twice-to-beat advantage vs Purefoods," said Caidic, whose team is in search of a first championship since the 1997 Commissioner’s Cup title conquest.

"The management deserves a break. We’ve long been on a slump. In fact, this is our very first semis stint since finishing third in the 1998 Centennial Cup. We’ll try to step up our game," said Reyes. "Who knows, we may pull off an upset and go on to stop the franchise’s slump."