Meralco, San Mig begin best-of-five semis series

Game today:

Araneta Coliseum

6:45 p.m.- Meralco vs. San Mig

THE MERALCO Bolts and the San Mig Coffee Mixers gun for a crucial headway as the best-of-five semifinal round of the 38th PBA Governors’ Cup starts today at the Araneta Coliseum.

The other semifinal match-up, which starts Monday, features the number one seed Petron Blaze Boosters against the fourth-ranked Rain or Shine Elasto Painters.

The semifinalists are actually the top four seeds with the third-seeded Mixers being the last to qualify after needing to go through a do-or-die showdown against the Alaska Aces.

The twice-to-beat Mixers lost to the Aces in their initial meeting, 105-112, but came up with the necessary adjustment to pull off a vengeful 83-73 win last Friday.

“We treated the game like a championship. It’s not easy. It’s very physical out there but we’re able to make a run and came out with the win,” San Mig import Marqus Blakely told pba.ph after the match. Blakely tallied 30 points, 13 rebounds, five blocks and three assists.

Meralco, which also enjoyed a twice-to-beat advantage, had an easy outing in the quarterfinals as it handily defeated the Barako Bull Energy Colas, 86-68, to book its first-ever semifinal appearance.

The two squads figured in a tight battle in their elimination round meeting with the Coffee Mixers barely escaping the Bolts, 87-88. The series will have Meralco head coach Ryan Gregorio going up against his former team. Gregorio coached the Purefoods franchise for eight seasons and won two titles. Gregorio transferred to the Bolts in 2011.  /EDITORIAL ASSISTANT CALVIN D. CORDOVA