Barangay Ginebra battles Converge on Christmas Day

THE CAST is complete and it’s going to be a three-day calm before a fiery storm hits Smart Araneta Coliseum on Christmas Day to reveal the presents and fates of the featured teams in the PBA Season 50 quarterfinals.

There will be no love on the court from the four teams of reigning champion San Miguel, NLEX, Converge and crowd darling Barangay Ginebra when they tangle in the first quarterfinal bracket to continue the PBA tradition during holidays and keep their seasons alive.

TNT Tropang 5G (8-3), after a 94-83 win to spoil LA Tenorio’s debut as Magnolia’s player coach, sealed the third seed and gifted Converge the fourth spot (7-4) for the last two twice-to-beat incentives.

That win denied Barangay Ginebra a shot at the top 4, settling for fifth spot at 7-4 after a close 108-105 win against Titan Ultra (4-7) to end the elimination round.

And so it’s Ginebra on the big stage anew to treat the PBA fans a Christmas present, tackling Converge at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday at the Big Dome before an expected jam packed crowd.

San Miguel, the No. 1 seed with a nine-game win streak at 9-2, takes on the eighth-seeded NLEX (6-5) in the first game at 5:15 p.m.

The other quarterfinal bracket features No. 2 seed Rain or Shine (8-3) against No. 7 Meralco (6-5) and No. 3 TNT (8-3) and No. 6 Magnolia (6-5) starting on Saturday at the same venue. Game 2s, if necessary, is on Sunday and on Monday, respectively.

The Beermen and the FiberXers, as the higher seeds, hold twice-to-beat incentives, sporting a pretty chance to send their foes packing for good for the rest of the holidays for quick seats in the Final Four.

But a staple never-say-die team during PBA’s iconic Christmas Day games in Ginebra is not keen on going home just yet, riding on a five-game winning streak to end the elims with a bang, in a bid to force a sudden-death Game 2.

“Christmas Day games are tough and they’re hard to lock into. That’s one of the challenges of being a coach, player of Ginebra or just being a Ginebra team,” said coach Tim Cone.

“You’re being out in these situations a lot but again, it’s out of our control. We just deal with what we can deal with so I think our guys are gonna get ready on Christmas Day.”

NLEX, for its part, will also have some morale boost with the return of ace guard Robert Bolick after a triumphant tour of duty with gold medalist Gilas Pilipinas in the 33^rd Southeast Asian Games in Bangkok, Thailand over the weekend. — John Bryan Ulanday