SLR out to beat Alaska by 18 pts

It was not clear if it was a joke or not, but Sta. Lucia coach Alfrancis Chua promised they would beat Alaska Milk by 18 points tonight.

The league statisticians said the losing margin is just what the Realtors need to avoid to formalize their entry into the Samsung PBA All-Filipino Cup Final Four.

"Ah ganoon ba, sige tatalunin na lang namin sila by 18 points para walang problema," said Chua, moments after they squeaked past San Miguel Beermen and into threshold of the semifinals.

On the eve of today’s match at the Araneta Coliseum, Chua still sounded hell-bent on beating the Aces, telling The STAR: "Talagang pupukpok pa rin kami. Walang tumulong sa amin sa pagpunta namin kung nasaan kami ngayon. Dapat paghirapan din nila (Alaska) ang pagpasok nila sa semis."

But the Realtors will be doing that minus ace forward Kenneth Duremdes who suffered a strained calf muscle in the homestretch of their game against San Miguel Wednesday. At presstime, Duremdes was undergoing a magnetic resonance imaging test at St. Luke’s Hospital to know the full extent of his injury.

"Mas okay na siya (Duremdes). Mukhang mapapadali ang balik niya," said Chua of Duremdes who was earlier declared out for the next two weeks by his physician Dr. Raul Canlas.

With an emphatic win over FedEx two Fridays back and a two-point decision over San Miguel Wednesday, Sta. Lucia can afford to lose by 17 points or less to Alaska and still automatically make it to the next round.

Alaska is in a must-win situation just like FedEx and San Miguel Beer which collide in the other game at 6:30 p.m.

Victories by Alaska and FedEx will force a three-way tie at No. 1 among the Realtors, the Aces and the Express. In this scenario, the team with the best quotient gains automatic entry into the next round with the two others left to dispute the second berth in a playoff.

A three-way tie at No. 2 among Alaska, FedEx and San Miguel will happen in case the Realtors beat the Aces and the Beermen defeat the Express. The tie will be resolved by a double-playoff.

Sta. Lucia and Alaska make it to the semis right away if the Aces beat the Realtors and the Beermen defeat the Express. FedEx automatically joins Sta. Lucia in the semis should the Express overcome the Beermen and the Realtors topple the Aces.

Like Realtors, the Express are hurting with injuries to key players. Vergel Meneses is nursing a pulled hamstring while Yancy de Ocampo recovering from a sprained ankle.

Curiously, Meneses‚ showing continues to be the barometer on how FedEx does in the tourney. The Express have won 11 games with Meneses scoring at least 22 points and lost nine games with the flamboyant forward making only nine points or less.

"We really need Meneses to set the tone of our game. Against San Miguel on Sunday (today), hopefully we can sustain the energy and intensity we‚ve shown against Alaska," said FedEx coach Derrick Pumaren.