Welcoat guns for finals seat vs Fash

Pacesetter Welcoat Paints guns for the first finals berth today as it takes on arch-rival Fash Liquid Detergent in what could be a preview of the championship in the PBL Platinum Cup at the San Juan Gym.

The top two teams clash in the 4 p.m. main game with the Paintmasters all out to notch their 12th victory in 15 games and the first berth in the finals and the Liquid Power hoping to boost their bid and stall the pacesetting defending champions.

Sunkist-UST and Blustar Detergent collide in the other semis match at 2 p.m. with both teams in must-win situation with 8-6 and 7-7 cards, respectively.

After dropping their first two games in the semis, both the Tigers and Detergent Kings have to win their remaining four matches to gain a playoff for one of two finals slots under the 4-of-6 incentive rule.

The Tigers are toting an 8-6 card while the Detergent Kings have a 7-7 win-loss mark.

The Liquid Power have won five straight games dating back to the elims and coach Junel Baculi is hoping they could match the six-game streak by the Paint Masters in the elims.

It’s going to be a tough act but Baculi is optimistic about it.

"I’m sure it’s going to be a close contest. We are going to stake our five-game winning run and hopefully we can stretch it further," said Baculi moments after steering his team to a scary 64-58 win over Blustar last Thursday.

While the Liquid Power needed all the breaks in the waning moments before scoring their second straight win in the semis, the Paint Masters coasted to a breezy 85-56 win over the Tigers.

Even coach Leo Austria is convinced that today’s match will be more exciting, saying: "Sa tingin ko mas maganda ang maging laban namin ngayon. Pukpukan ito." Welcoat and Fash split their first two games with the Paint Masters winning the last, 82-77, behind the late heroics of pro-bound James Yap. The 6-foot-3 swingman from Escalante, Negros Occidental, hit 11 of his 14 points in the cruciual fourth period.

Aside from Yap, also expected to deliver the goods for the Paint Masters are Willy Wilson, Jojo Tangkay, Ervin Sotto, Marc Pingris and Paul Artadi. Even sixth man Nelbert Omolon can be as dangerous as Tangkay and Yap given more exposure by Austria.

Baculi has acknoledged the offensive might of the Paint Masters but he emphasized that their defense will be Welcoat’s biggest problem although he has a slew of good shooters in the squad, among them Peter June Simon, Nino Gelig, Allan Salangsang and Wesley Gonzales.

Banking on a rock-solid defense, the Liquid Power held the Detergent Kings to an all-time low of five assists.