Games today:
Ynares Center, Antipolo City
4:15 p.m.- Ginebra vs. Powerade
6:30 p.m.- Rain or Shine vs. Petron
Four teams gun for crucial wins in today’s twinbill of the 37th PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City.
The Barangay Ginebra Kings play the Powerade Tigers in the first game while the Rain or Elasto Painters tackle the Petron Blaze Boosters in the main game.
The Kings and the Tigers are tied at second place in the team standings with similar 2-1 (win-loss) records. Leading the pack are the defending champions Talk ‘N Text Tropang Texters, who are unbeaten in three starts.
The Tigers missed the chance of tying the Texters at the top when they lost to the Barako Bull Energy, 91-101, last Friday, that ended their two-game win streak.
Ginebra is fresh from a close 89-88 win over Rain or Shine in their out-of-the-country game in Dubai, UAE last Feb. 23. The loss pulled the Painters down to ninth place with a 1-3 record.
Petron is gunning for a third straight win as it looks to stay in the top 6.
The Boosters, who started the conference with two straight losses, are tied with the B-Meg Llamados for the fifth and sixth spots with identical 2-2 records.
As of this writing, the Llamados were still playing the Air21 Express in Tacloban City.
Keeping their current spot will be crucial for the Boosters since only the top six teams will advance to the playoff.
Tournament format states that the 10 teams will play nine games in the elimination round with the top two squads automatically advancing to the semifinal round. The number three to six teams will proceed to the quaterfinal round while the seventh to 10th squad will be eliminated.