AFTER an emphatic ninth win in as many games, San Miguel Beer is showing no signs of letting up in the PBA Philippine Cup.
Pity the Blackwater Bossing, whose turn it is to try and stop the Beermen juggernaut Wednesday at the PhilSports Arena.
A win by Blackwater would not only stop their six-game downward spiral and boost their record to 4-6 but also give them a chance at tying for one of the last slots in the eight-team quarterfinals.
A victory Wednesday and against Phoenix Super LPG on Saturday at the Ynares Arena in Pasig and the Bossing would end up in a tie with NorthPort and other teams which also end up the eliminations with a 5-6 slate.
San Miguel should be a tough enough task since it is not about to let up on its seemingly inexorable drive, at least in the elims which culminates with a match against Meralco also on Saturday but at the Batangas City Coliseum.
“Our next goal is the 10th win,” said coach Jorge Gallent after steering SMB to a 120-103 win over NLEX last Sunday that assured his side of the top seeding and a win-once advantage over the No. 8 team in the next round.
“We are going step-by-step. Monday, Tuesday, we will prepare for Blackwater and for now, we will just think of the 10th game. We will think of Blackwater,” stated Gallent.
“On Wednesday, we will play Blackwater. We will prepare against Blackwater and then Saturday, against Meralco,” added Gallent. “As of now, Meralco isn’t even in our heads because we are playing Blackwater on Wednesday.”
The league has not seen an elims sweep since Talk N Text won all nine games in the classification phase of the 2014 Commissioner’s Cup.
Gallent said it would be a great achievement for the team if they won all the games in the elimination round. But he quickly added that he and his charges are not about to let such a trivia distract them from their purpose.
“If it comes, it comes, but that’s not really in our minds,” reminded Gallent. “We just do it step-by-step, prepare for every team when it comes.”
Besides, maintaining its razor-sharp edge should serve SMB in good stead when the playoffs come around.
“Gusto naming manalo, gusto naming makuha yung No. 1 spot kasi ‘yun naman ang goal namin bago pa nag-start ‘yung conference,” said Beermen prized center June Mar Fajardo. “And then nakuha na namin ‘yun. So ang challenge ngayon is how to stay on top.” (NC)
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