By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Days after a grueling PBA Governor’s Cup quarterfinal round that featured two matchup series pushing until the winner-take-all Game 5 decider, the Top 4 teams are now set and will take center stage today at the Philsports Arena.
After an exhausting Game 5 victory over the Converge FiberXers, the San Miguel Beermen will return to the PBA hardwood and will face familiar foes when they clash with the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel in the first scheduled game of the doubleheader.
Meanwhile, the Rain or Shine Elastopainters seek to maintain their momentum and challenge the hungry TNT Tropang Giga.
Both San Miguel and Rain or Shine are coming off elimination games from the quarterfinals but Ginebra and TNT received ample time of rest after cruising past the Meralco Bolts and the NLEX Road Warriors, respectively, with ease.
Ginebra is fresh from a sweeping series win over arch-rivals Meralco Bolts and is yet to lose a single game in the ongoing PBA Playoffs.
On the other hand, San Miguel had some polishing left to do after wasting their 2-0 series lead over Converge.
Despite the commanding advantage, the Beermen squandered their chances of bringing out the brooms as Converge stole Games 3 & 4 to stay alive in the series.
However, reigning PBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) June Mar Fajardo took matters into his own hands and dropped 40 points which sent the FiberXers packing.
If San Miguel wants to get over the hump, they must survive the rampaging Justin Brownlee who is still in the zone after delivering clutch performances for Ginebra against Meralco.
In the other series matchup, Rain or Shine is bound for a fresh scenery with their young core group led by Andrei Caracut, Adrian Nocum, Jhonard Clarito, Santi Santillan, Caelan Tiongson, and Felix Lemetti.
The youngsters showed nerves of steel and were key to eliminating the star-studded Magnolia Hotshots Chicken Timplados in a thrilling Game 5 win.
Caracut put Rain or Shine behind his back and scored three crucial buckets that put Magnolia away for good.
Backstopping the rejuvenated Rain or Shine crew is the hardworking Aaron Fuller who averaged a dominant double-double in the quarterfinal stage.
But the biggest question heading to the matchup. Can Fuller stop Rondae Hollis-Jefferson?
RHJ returned to TNT with hopes of bringing the championship trophy back and he is still producing the usual average numbers when he led the Tropang Giga to the import-laced conference title last year.
Aside from RHJ’s efficient two-way outing, Jayson Castro, the team’s ever-reliable floor general, rekindled his spark and delivered several solid outings during their series win over NLEX.
Calvin Oftana has been a beast for TNT, as well as the veteran Kelly Williams who seemed submerging himself into the fountain of youth this season.
Which team will advance to the grand finals?
Place your bets.
