Friday, July 25, 2008 Kings gun for 3-0 lead vs. Barakos
MANILA –Barangay Ginebra tries to move a step away towards its 17th finals appearance in franchise history and a commanding 3-0 lead over Red Bull in the best-of-seven semifinal series of the 2008 Smart-PBA Fiesta Conference in Antipolo City.
Fresh from their 111-101 win over the Barakos last Wednesday, the Kings meet the Barakos at 7:20 p.m., while Magnolia Beverage and Air 21 break their 1-1 tie when they clash in the first match at 4:50 p.m.
Coach Jong Uichico of the Kings, who won Game 1, 108-82, last Sunday, does not want his team to relax, saying it’s not over until their fourth victory comes.
But the league’s records showed the Kings are almost there as 25 of 30 teams that took a 2-0 lead in a best-of-seven series went on to win the series for a probability success rate of 83 percent.
The most recent was Sta. Lucia, which took a 2-0 upperhand over Purefoods in the finals of the 2008 Philippine Cup, which the Realtors eventually won, 4-3.
However, history also shows only five teams have overcame a 0-2 deficit in a best-of-7 series, four of them in the last six years and two in the last 4 conferences.
Among them were Ginebra against San Miguel Beer in the 2007 Philippine Cup Finals.
The others were Purefoods vs. Alaska in the 2006 Philippine Cup semis, Talk ‘N Text vs. Coca-Cola in the 2003, Purefoods vs. Alaska in 2002 Governors Cup Finals and Toyota vs. San Miguel Beer in the 1982 Reinforced Filipino Conference Finals But unlike in the first game of the series when the Kings led from start to finish, the second was different as the Barakos battled through three lead changes and two deadlocks until in the last seven minutes of the second period, when Ginebra threw a quick 10-2 rally to sretch its lead for good. (FCC)
