REIGNING champion Meralco and Converge should both be looking to avoid the No. 8 spot in the quarterfinal round of the PBA 49th Season Philippine Cup.
For obvious reasons.
From the two teams mentioned, only Converge has a game to be played and it is against San Miguel on Wednesday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium. And in all likelihood, the team that will end up as the eighth seed will be facing the same San Miguel squad in the first round of the playoffs.
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A look at the possible scenarios see Meralco in line to battle San Miguel in the quarterfinals in the event the Beermen secure the No. 1 seed with an 8-3 win-loss record. That will happen with a win over Converge on Wednesday and a victory over NorthPort on Sunday.
The Bolts are currently in Dubai for the Basketball Champions League Asia and have already finished the eliminations with a 6-5 win-loss mark. They will finish at solo eighth if Converge goes on to beat San Miguel on Wednesday.
Converge in crucial game vs. San Miguel
But if Converge doesn’t beat San Miguel, the FiberXers could go down to the No. 8 seed in the quarterfinals.
If the FiberXers lose to the Beermen, Converge will drop to a tie with Meralco at 6-5. In such a scenario, the FiberXers will go down to No. 8 in the quarterfinals owing to their 91-89 loss to the Bolts on opening day last April 4.
That game was decided by Chris Newsome's last-second jumper.
Staying on the topic of a Newsome game-winner, if Meralco and SMB meet in the quarterfinals, it will be a rematch of last season’s Philippine Cup finals that saw the Bolts win their first-ever PBA title at the expense of the Beermen on, yes, a game-winning shot by Newsome.
However, if San Miguel goes on to sweep its remaining games against Converge on Wednesday and NorthPort on Sunday, it’s going to be San Miguel against Converge in the quarterfinals.
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