Beermen in crucial setto vs Road Warriors

SAN MIGUEL Beer, hopefully better chemistry-wise with the return of three regulars, tries to stay in the fight for a top-two berth in the Oppo-PBA Commissioner’s Cup playoffs today against an NLEX side that is also in dire need of a win.

Tip-off is at 4:15 p.m. at Smart Araneta Coliseum with the Beermen coming off a humiliating 84-110 loss at the hands of sister team Barangay Ginebra on Sunday in a game where they showed up in full force but never had a chance after trailing by 16 at the half.

Rain or Shine tries to stay in the upper half of the draw when the Elasto Painters battle the ousted GlobalPort Batang Pier at 7 p.m.

“There’s no doubt about it, we need to sweep our last three games,” San Miguel coach Leo Austria said on Sunday night.

Tyler Wilkerson, saddled by early fouls, played his worst game yet, and the return of June Mar Fajardo, Arwind Santos and utility forward Ronald Tubid hardly helped the Beermen turn the tide against the Gin Kings.

But after getting their feet wet, the Beermen are listed as the odds-on favorites in the game, with a win giving them a tie for second place with idle Alaska and a loss practically relegating the powerhouse side to a best-of-three series.

San Miguel has been the consensus team-to-beat in the tournament after ruling the Philippine Cup in historic style earlier in the year.

Losing to the Gin Kings put the Beermen in a relatively precarious situation, as a loss in any of their last three games could ultimately drop them into a tie for second place with Ginebra.

That 26-point defeat, when the tiebreak is applied, will ultimately knock San Miguel out of the chase for the twice-to-beat advantage.