AT present, Barangay Ginebra owns the distinction as the hottest team in the PBA 50th Season Commissioner's Cup by recording its fifth straight win on Sunday.
Fueled by the stellar plays of Justin Brownlee, RJ Abarrientos, Scottie Thompson, and Troy Rosario in a 119-107 win over Titan Ultra, the Gin Kings are currently in a share of second place with NLEX on a 7-2 win-loss record.
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The games will be tougher for Ginebra as they go up against Meralco, Rain or Shine, and TNT in the last stretch of the elimination round.
But if Ginebra goes on to sweep its remaining games, the No. 1 spot could be theirs. Here's how.
How Ginebra will clinch No. 1
One of the ways for Ginebra to book the No. 1 seed is for the Gin Kings to end up in a tie with Rain or Shine with a 10-2 win-loss record by sweeping their three remaining games including one against the Elasto Painters. This is also under the assumption that NLEX loses at least a game including against Rain or Shine in their remaining matches.
Under this scenario, Ginebra will win the tiebreak over Rain or Shine due to the winner-over-the-other, meaning the Gins will take the No. 1 seed in the playoffs.
The Gin Kings can still secure the No. 1 spot in case of a three-way tie with Rain or Shine and NLEX, but that will already depend on the winning margin of their games against each other. At the moment, only NLEX and Ginebra have met with the Road Warriors winning, 118-113, last March 27.
Rain or Shine faces NLEX on Wednesday, and Barangay Ginebra on Friday - games which have a significant effect on their seeding in the quarterfinals especially if the three squads finish in a tie for first place.
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