Must-win for Gin Kings versus Darwin All-Stars

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN — Barangay Ginebra hopes to snap a three-game losing skid as it fights for dear life versus the Darwin All-Stars from Australia today in the sixth Shell Rimula Brunei Cup at the National Indoor Stadium here.

The Kings now face a must-win situation, having lost their last three games by close margins following a triumphant debut against the Jordan All-Stars.

Heading into today’s matches, the Kings, the Jordanians and the Saudis sport identical 1-3 win-loss records.

They are left to dispute the last slot in the Final Four with San Miguel-RP Team, SK Knights and Darwin securing the first three seats.

Ginebra moved on the brink of elimination following a 79-85 defeat at the hands of the Saudi Arabia All-Stars Friday.

Raed Al Derees fired eight three-pointers as the Saudis countered every Ginebra uprising for a breakthrough win after losing their first three games.

"I will not make any excuses. We could have won the game but we failed to convert at endgame," said Barangay Ginebra coach Jong Uichico.

"We’re lacking in some positions so the tendency was to play our key players for longer minutes," Uichico added. "Fatigue has started to set in."

The Gin Kings have been hard-pressed to adjust their guard rotation after playmaker Egay Echavez hurt his knee against the SK Knights two nights ago.

While the Saudi gunners scored well from the outside, only Sunday Salvacion shone bright from beyond the arc for the Kings. Salvacion buried six of Ginebra’s eight three-pointers out of 26 attempts.

With Mark Caguioa, Eric Menk and Salvacion on the attack, the Gin Kings came back from a 31-38 deficit and took a seven-point lead at one instance before Derees rained triples on the other end.

The Kings had 21 turnovers compared to the KSA All-Stars’ seven miscues.

The Saudis made a near-excellent account of themselves after going 15 of 21 from two-point range for a 71-percent shooting clip. The Gin Kings made 59 percent of their attempts (23 of 39) in the same area.

With Echavez nursing a hurting knee, free-agent Christian Coronel was shoved into the starting lineup and directed traffic for the Gin Kings for extended minutes. Jayjay Helterbrand, Ginebra’s starting point guard, is still in the injury list.

"We need another point guard and an off guard in the rotation," said Uichico, who started calling the shots for the Gin Kings only three weeks ago when the six-time champion coach was reassigned from San Miguel Beer.