INQUIRER Sports

MANILA, Philippines - San Miguel shoots for a 3-1 lead that everyone expects while Rain or Shine seeks the same buffer very few gave the Elasto Painters a chance of achieving at the start of their separate semifinal series.

The Beermen, flashing their old mean form, clash with a Burger King side that they blew off the floor in two of the three times they battled in their own Motolite Fiesta Cup best-of-seven semifinal series.

Game time is 7:30 p.m. at the Araneta Coliseum, right after the duel between the Painters and the defending champion Barangay Ginebra Kings at 5.

?We have shown that we have the heart to play in this level,? Rain or Shine coach Caloy Garcia told sportswriters, shortly after their 94-88 Game 3 victory.

?And we won?t stop here. We want to achieve more.?

The Painters are trying to reach their first title series in franchise history despite the absence of crack guard Solomon Mercado, who is recovering from a right hamstring pull.

Ginebra is struggling to get consistent numbers from its players, especially in the crunch. Jayjay Helterbrand averaged 25.5 points in the last two games but the firebrand guard was held scoreless in the fourth quarter of each outing.

And while the Rain or Shine-Ginebra series has been run-and-gun and exciting to watch, the Burger King-San Miguel pairing has taken a very physical turn with the Commissioner?s Office slapping fines on several personalities Tuesday.

Burger King coach Yeng Guiao was slapped an P83,600 fine for verbally abusing game officials and confronting them in the hallway, while Burger forward Beau Belga drew a P10,000 fine and a reprimand for his third Flagrant Foul 1 call in the series.

Wesley Gonzales of San Miguel was fined P6,000 for his second motion on Mark Yee after the Burger King swingman busted his forehead open with a hard foul in the first half on Sunday.