STAR Margarine shoots for its third straight win in as many games today but with a mission more meaningful than the previous two triumphs.
This is not to lessen the luster of Star’s glistening back-to-back wins over GlobalPort in the quarterfinal knockout.
In fact, those victories took the Hotshots to the semifinals via the backdoor, a feat that showcased once again Coach Tim Cone’s uncanny ability to rise to the occasion when pushed against the wall.
But in the blizzard battle for a Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup Finals seat beginning with today’s semifinal clash, Star’s sudden stature of invincibility will be tested by Alaska.
It will not only be a best-of-five series dripping with sentimentalism as Cone was once Alaska’s more-than-20 years coach, the longest single-team coaching stint in the league. Cone also captured his first of two Grand Slam titles with Alaska in 1993, before moving to San Miguel Corp. in 2013 and winning his second Slam for Purefoods in 2014.
Alaska is coached by Alex Compton, an American like Cone, which is another pointed proof of team owner Freddie Uytengsu’s penchant in favoring Americans to pilot his squad.
No beef there, as Uytengsu himself is an American.
And isn’t Manuel V. Pangilinan, a.k.a. MVP, also enamored with American coaches?
Norman Black coaches MVP’s Meralco.
And now, very recently, American Tab Baldwin was appointed coach of MVP’s Sinag Pilipinas set to do battle in the Fiba Asia Cup in China this September for the coveted Asian slot to the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games.
Baldwin had just engineered a rousing coaching start by steering the Philippine Cadet squad to the recent SEA Games basketball gold, achieving it, though in a not-so-masterful manner as our boys barely made it after some anxious moments.
If not, perhaps, for the presence of Marcus Douthit, the 7-foot American now a naturalized Filipino, who knows what might have happened to us in Singapore?
Anyway, back to the PBA Govs’ semifinals.
After today’s initial skirmish between Star and Alaska, San Miguel Beer and Rain or Shine take to the floor on Thursday in their own best-of-five series for a Finals berth.
While the Painters had to grind it out to advance, surviving two overtimes to prevent Barako Bull from forging a second-game decider, the Beermen were pushed to the limit (they lost Game One, 99-106) before finally asserting themselves with a forceful 102-86 Game Two win over Meralco on Monday.
June Mar Fajardo’s double-double of 22 points and 16 rebounds for SMB were superbly backstopped by AZ Reid’s 29 points and Marcio Lassiter’s 17 points. Lassiter had three triples in the final frame, including two in a row for a 79-69 SMB lead in the fourth, after a lethargic two-point showing in the first half.
But also shining brightly was Ronald Tubid, who scored well and whose shackling of Meralco import Andre Emmett in the fourth quarter was a key to SMB’s defensive stops.
SMB chasing a second straight PBA crown will find the Yeng Guiao-mentored Rain or Shine a thorn in the neck in their clash, what with the Painters’ vaunted physicality.
It’s going to be interesting, Star versus Alaska starting today and SMB against RoS unveiling tomorrow.
Good luck, fellers. And, please, let’s keep it clean. It’s just basketball.
THAT’S IT. According to Valentin Dakuykoy, my BLF (Best Legman Forever), the Finals battle will be between San Miguel Beer and Star Margarine. His crystal ball has yielded a 99.99-percent batting average thus far.