Skidding Pals must win to avoid playoff

Better call a quack to exorcise the Mobiline Phone Pals.

The Phone Pals themselves didn’t know what hit them in a lousy showing against the Alaska Aces Sunday and they’re aware they need to get back to their senses or their bid for an outright entry into the PBA Commissioner’s Cup quarterfinals will be busted.

Mobiline takes its last chance to reach the final eight without going through a playoff as it tackles Sta. Lucia Realty at the close of the elimination round at the Philsports Arena today.

Red Bull and Purefoods dispute the second seeding in the quarterfinals at 5:15 p.m. before Mobiline plays Sta. Lucia at 7:30.

The Phone Pals found themselves facing the specter of figuring in a playoff after suffering a mind-boggling 67-101 blowout to the Aces Sunday.

Before that, the Phone Pals were even still entertaining hopes of a crack at the Magic Four that would have given them a twice-to-beat incentive in the quarters.

But Mobiline is out of it all now and the team is hoping to salvage its windup game in the elims to at least make the quarters without playing knockout matches.

With a 3-5 win-loss record, Mobiline is half-game ahead of Pop Cola, Tanduay and Shell which are now bracing up for a double-playoff.

The Turbo Chargers forced a three-way tie at 3-6 among themselves, the Panthers and the Rhum Masters as they won their last two games over the Ginebra Kings and the Alaska Aces.

The Aces, meanwhile, assured themselves of the last slot in the Magic Four on their ghastly rout of the Phone Pals.

The Realtors can tie the Aces at 5-4 with a win today against the Phone Pals. In this case, the Realtors will still only settle for the No. 5 seeding because of an inferior quotient.