Christmas Day rumble up for No. 2 spot

To many, Christmas is about giving and sharing.

But that won’t be the case for Barangay Ginebra, Rain or Shine, Talk n Text and Air21 who will mix it up at the close of the KFC PBA Philippine Cup double-round elimination phase this Christmas Day at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Kings clash with the Elasto Painters then the Tropang Texters collide with the Express in a pair of matches both expected to go down-to-the-wire.

Talk n Text, Rain or Shine and Barangay Ginebra are slugging it out for the No. 2 spot at the end of the elims while Air21 is out to salvage a spot in the Magic Five.

Heading to this Christmas Day doubleheader, complications abound with several scenarios requiring playoff or double-playoff to resolve ties. What’s certain is that all four teams need to win to keep their respective bids afloat.

“Big game,” said coach Chot Reyes whose Talk n Text team is out to nail either an outright semifinals berth or a playoff for an automatic semis slot.

The same is in store for Rain or Shine in its game versus Barangay Ginebra.

“It’s very crucial, maybe the biggest game of the team. Basically, we just have to play our kind of game to beat Ginebra,” said Rain or Shine coach Caloy Garcia.

Talk n Text and Rain or Shine prevailed over Air21 and Ginebra in their previous tiffs. Should they repeat, the Texters and the Painters arrange a playoff Sunday to determine who join the Alaska Milk Aces in an early entry into the semis.

In the same scenario, the Kings will settle for a playoff for the No. 5 slot with the San Miguel Beermen while the Express are automatically relegated into the wildcard round.

A game behind Talk n Text and Rain or Shine, Ginebra has a tall mountain to climb to salvage the No. 2 spot. First, the Kings have to pray for a Talk n Text loss to Air21 then they must beat the Painters by 14 or more to get a playoff crack at the coveted seat.

“At this stage, I’m not thinking of that (playoff) possibility,” said Ginebra coach Jong Uichico. “We’ll assess our situation after the first game. If Air21 wins and we’re within beating Rain or Shine by 14 in the closing minutes, that’s the only time I’ll think of it.”

The Kings are coming off an 87-82 win over the Beermen in a road game in Batangas Saturday where Jayjay Helterbrand put in a career-high 35 points.

The Painters are hot, having won four of their last five games. They stayed in equal footing with the Texters as they nipped the Beermen, 93-92, Wednesday on a jaw-dropping shot by Gabe Norwood with a tenth-of-a-second left in the clock.

The Texters are currently the hottest team, winning six of their last seven games. The Express, meanwhile, are coming off successive losses to Red Bull and Alaska.

Coach Bo Perasol and his boys, however, are determined to come out of the rut, knowing how tough it is to go through the wildcard round.

“We’ve been there so many times before. It’s tough to survive that phase,” said Perasol.

Teams who fall in the wildcard need to win two knockout settos just to make the quarterfinals.