Mad scramble for top 2 spots

THE TOP half of the quarterfinal cast in the Oppo PBA Commissioner’s Cup has virtually been decided but the two leading positions in the playoffs remain up in the air going into the last two weeks of eliminations.

Meralco has regained top spot with a 6-2 win-loss record before the Lenten break as Alaska tumbled to second at 5-3 after taking a second straight loss following an upset 102-94 decision from underdog Mahindra last Monday.

Also at 5-3 was Barangay Ginebra with San Miguel Beer, Alaska’s tormentor before Mahindra, close behind at 4-2.

Defending champion Tropang TNT and last year’s runner-up Rain or Shine were tied at 4-4 with Mahindra and Star as the Texters blasted the Elasto Painters, 114-103, last Monday. NLEX (3-4) and Blackwater (3-5) still have a shot at the last two berths in the eight-team playoff cast while Phoenix (2-5) and GlobalPort (2-6) now need a miracle to advance.

The two best teams in the eliminations will get a twice-to-beat bonus against the last two qualifiers in the quarterfinal playoffs with the rest of the survivors going through a best-of-three series pitting No. 3 against No. 6 and No. 4 against No. 5. The winners advance to the best-of-five semifinals followed by the best-of-seven title playoffs.

Based on the remaining schedule, Ginebra has the toughest path to a top berth with SMB, Meralco and TNT as its last three opponents. Aside from Ginebra, Meralco will still face Alaska and Mahindra while the Aces have the Star Hotshots and the NLEX Road Warriors as their other major hurdles.

The Beermen, who were playing the Hotshots at press time yesterday, also have to contend with TNT, NLEX and Phoenix Petroleum.

* * *

The plan was to put in two solid tournament performances before the Masters but with the way he’s playing, Filipino-Australian Jason Day will be a hot favorite when the first of golf’s four majors tees off April 7 at Augusta National Golf Club.

After winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard last March 20, the 28-year-old Day bucked a bad back to reach the semifinals of the WGC-Dell Match Play Championship Saturday against Rory McIlroy and, in the process, reclaimed the No. 1 spot in the official World Golf Ranking regardless of how he fares on the final day at Austin Country Club.

Day, whose mother comes from Leyte, and McIlroy both won two matches to arrange a first semifinal meeting in the event. He suffered from back spasms Wednesday in his match against Graeme McDowell but managed to return the next day after receiving treatment. He was a bit tight Saturday but was still too good for Brandt Snedeker and Brooks Koepka in the semifinals.

Day became No. 1 in the world last September after winning the BMW Championship, his fifth victory of 2015. He lost it after just one week, regained it for three weeks before Spieth wrested it in early November and held it until Saturday.

Day will actually be gunning for back-to-back major victories following his conquest of the PGA championship last August. He failed to contend in the last two editions of the Master but he tied for second in 2011 and also figured in the title race before ending up in a three-way deadlock for third in 2013.