Aces face Boosters, Bolts go up vs B Pier

MANILA, Philippines - Alaska Milk and Petron Blaze square off once again after their tumultuous duel two weeks ago, both pressing their bids for the Top Two nearing the homestretch of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup elimination round at the Smart Araneta Coliseum today.

Meralco seeks to regain a .500 mark while Globalport fights for survival in the other match of the Holy Wednesday twinbill of the mid-season tourney.

The Aces have no more Renaldo Balkman to think about but, minus injured key players Jayvee Casio and Sonny Thoss, still face a daunting task against the Boosters in their 7:30 p.m. rematch.

Casio is still resting an injured kneecap while Thoss is out with a sore back.

“We need to keep on competing to control our destiny for the top two spots. Even with injured guys, we can go at it,” said Alaska coach Luigi Trillo, expressing confidence they can finish at Top Two and gain twice-to-beat advantage in the quarterfinals.

Having lost three of their last five games, the Aces now share first place with the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters at 7-3. And the Boosters breathe down their neck at 6-3.

In their previous tiff, Alaska frustrated Balkman with an unforgiving defense, sending the Petron import to a wild outburst that resulted to his lifetime ban from the league and the entry of Rodney White as Petron import replacement.

White had a lousy debut with the Boosters Friday against the Talk n Text Tropang Texters, going 5-of-17 from the field for only 12 points in 31 minutes of action. The Boosters squandered a six-point lead inside the final minute of regulation and went scoreless in overtime as they suffered a sorry 85-93 loss to the Texters.

Coach Olsen Racela, however, is hopeful White can do better in his second game with the team.

As crucial is the Meralco-Globalport tiff at 5:15 p.m.

“Things are heating up and the race to the top is getting tighter. Competitors relish situations like these. We will do our best to fight and give us a legitimate crack at snatching a victory,” Meralco coach Ryan Gregorio whose troops are at eighth place with a 4-5 record.

“Tough losses against San Mig Coffee and Ginebra, but no need to doubt. We only lost by an average of two possessions. If we stay disciplined in our offensive execution and strengthen our resolve on defense, we can come back on track,” Gregorio also said.

In tough situation is Globalport at 2-8 after having lost its last seven matches.

Team owner Mikee Romero has come out challenging their players to “show some pride.”