TOP seed Magnolia battles upset-conscious Phoenix Super LPG, while No. 2 seed San Miguel Beer meets defending champion Barangay Ginebra in a pair of exciting best-of-five semifinal matches in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Game time is 4 p.m. with all four teams, which enjoyed twice-to-beat incentives in the quarterfinal round, looking fit and confident to bring the battle to the next level.

The Tyler Bey-led Hotshots defeated the TNT Tropang Giga, 109-94, last Jan. 17 while the Johnathan Williams-bannered Fuel Masters needed an extra game to eliminate the Meralco Bolts, 88-84, only last Sunday.

The Beermen and the Kings also had little trouble dispatching the Rain or Shien E-Painters (127-122), and NorthPort Batang Pier (106-93), respectively, to arrange their own semifinal duel.

Despite finishing with a league-best 9-2 record in the eliminations, Magnolia coach Chito Victolero said he expects a very tough best-of-five series against Phoenix, which bounced back from a hard-fought 106-117 triple overtime loss to Meralco.

“Maganda ang inilalaro nila ngayon. Tapos coming from the two tough games against Meralco, ‘yung character mo mabubuo doon, ‘yung maturity ng players mapapadali doon,” said Victolero.

“They also have a very, very good import. I think sobrang nag-improve yung import niya since nakalaban naming sila sa elimination,” added Victolero.

Equally interesting is the San Miguel-Ginebra showdown starting at 8 p.m.

The two teams also battled in last year’s Governors Cup semis with the Kings sweeping the injury-hit Beermen in three games.

This conference, the Beermen defeated the Kings, 95-82, in their lone elimination round encounter last Dec. 15.

A major worry for Ginebra coach Tim Cone is how to counter the formidable Bennie Boatwright-June Mar Fajardo duo.

“It’s a dilemma all teams will have to figure it out and we’re going to try and figure it out. If we can’t, we’re not going to win the series,” said Cone.

Games Wednesday:

(Smart Araneta Coliseum)
4 p.m. — Phoenix vs. Magnolia
8 pm. — Ginebra vs. San Miguel

AUTHOR PROFILE

Robert Andaya