|
AIR21
coach Bo Perasol can sit back, relax and enjoy the game.
If he so
wishes, he could delegate the coaching chores to his
assistants tonight without having to worry about the
result of their final game in the elimination round of
the 2008 Smart-Philippine Basketball Association Fiesta
Cup
Win or
lose, the Air21Express are heading straight to the Final
Four of the season-ending tournament—a luxury they
claimed after Magnolia defeated Alaska, 80-79, on
Sunday.
But
Perasol is not the type of guy who takes anything for
granted. He insists nothing changes in their plan when
the Express face the Purefoods TJ Giants at 4:50 p.m. at
the Araneta Coliseum.
“Being
competitive and wanting to win are traits that a team
cannot just switch on and off. So ending the
eliminations on a winning note remains to be our focus.
We want to keep our momentum going and our confidence at
high level going into the playoffs,” Perasol said.
Purefoods coach Ryan Gregorio anticipates a tough grind
but he nevertheless remains optimistic about their
chances of landing in the top five that would mean
outright entry into the quarterfinals.
If the
Giants (8-9) intend to win their last elimination game,
their two superstars—James Yap and Kerby Raymundo—will
have turn in big numbers. The support cast, particularly
Peter Jun Simon, Roger Yap, Enrico Villanueva and Chico
Lanete also have to deliver.
“There
is still a slim chance of making it to No. 5. We are
excited of our chances of making it through the
backdoor. We’re not about to quit. We just have to take
care of our business,” Gregorio said.
The
skidding Coca-Cola Tigers are also hard-pressed to
clinch win No. 10 to hopefully earn at least a playoff
for an outright berth in the semifinals.
Just two
weeks ago the Tigers appeared set to clinch their place
in the Final Four until a dip in performance—possibly a
sign of fatigue—by import Jason Dixon turned Coke’s
fortune to alarming level.
The
Tigers have lost three of their last four games and,
with a 9-8 mark, are hard-pressed to win or face the
possibility of being relegated in the wildcard.
“This is
a big character test for us. We’ve shown time and again
our ability to rise in the face of adversity. It’s
interesting to see if we’re tough enough for this one,”
said Coca-Cola Binky Favis.
Coca-Cola winds up its elimination-round campaign
against Sta. Lucia (at 7:20 p.m.) whose import Lee
Benson remains a doubtful starter with a slight strain
on his left calf.
“We’re
prepared to battle Coke with or without Lee. We know our
chances of making the quarters is very slim, but we will
give it a try,” said Sta. Lucia coach Boyet Fernandez.
Coke
routed Sta. Lucia in their first meeting, 95-80. |
