Kings go anew for semis vs Painters

MANILA, Philippines – Title-holder Barangay Ginebra, foiled in its first shot at an outright semifinals seat, takes another crack at it versus a Rain or Shine team out to sustain a breakthrough showing in a double-playoff closing the Motolite PBA Fiesta Conference classification round at the Ynares Sports Center in Antipolo today.

The Kings and the Elasto Painters clash in the 6:30 p.m. mainer disputing second place in the prelims that will mean passage into the Final Four without going through the wildcard round and the quarterfinals.

Alaska Milk and Coca-Cola play at 4 p.m. to resolve their battle for eighth spot.

The winner gains a spot in the knockout pairings in the wildcard round while the loser is relegated to ninth place, needing to win two in a row in the wildcard to make the quarterfinals.

Coach Tim Cone and his Alaska Aces set out for the game in high spirits after squeezing out a 76-75 win over the Kings Friday.

“We have to contain their halfcourt execution and force them to play up-tempo,” said Coca-Cola coach Kenneth Duremdes.

Much of the attention, however, will be on the Ginebra-Rain or Shine match which decides which team joins early semifinalist San Miguel.

The Kings had a chance to grab the second outright semis seat Friday but they were foiled on their bid by Willie Miller, whose gutsy drive clinched a pulsating Alaska win over Ginebra.

Alaska’s victory opened the door for a possible first-ever automatic semis entry by the Elasto Painters in franchise history.

“We’ll give it a good shot,” said Rain or Shine prized Fil-Am rookie Gabe Norwood, who was at the Big Dome Friday with import Jai Lewis intently watching the Alaska-Ginebra tiff.

The two teams split their two meetings in the classification round with Rain or Shine winning the first match, 107-93, then Ginebra getting even, 94-89, with an all-Filipino lineup.

The Kings had gone on a six-game streak with Noel in tow before suffering the one-point loss to the Aces Friday.

Ginebra, Rain or Shine and Burger King actually finished with identical 8-6 win-loss cards. The Kings and the Elasto Painters are the ones figuring in a playoff due to superior quotients.