Game today:

(Mall of Asia Arena)

6:15 p.m. — Ginebra vs Meralco

Barangay Ginebra San Miguel blew out Meralco in the previous match to even the Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup semifinals series to two games apiece.

However, head coach Tim Cone reminds the Gin Kings that they are only as good as their last game and the best-of-seven series is far from over.

So, he expects nothing but another grind-it-out battle against the feisty Meralco Bolts when they meet in the all-important Game 5 today at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Ginebra snapped a two-game slide with a morale-boosting 90-71 crushing of Meralco last Friday to turn the semis showdown into a virtual race to two wins.

“Winning by a big margin is all just pogi points in a series,” Cone said.

“You don’t get extra games for it. If you win by 30 you still get one win. If you win by one point, you’ll still gonna get one win. So, basically, it’s just one win going into the next game.”

Cone brought in veteran guards L.A. Tenorio and Stanley Pringle as starters, catching the Bolts by surprise.

Ginebra led by as many as 27 points in a game where it never trailed.

“The only good part about having that big margin was the fact that we’re able to rest our starters but they got to rest their starters too. So, it’s all gonna equal out,” the tactician said.

Cone now braces for Meralco’s fightback.

“It’s gonna come down to a big whopper of a game in Game 5. It’s going to be a pivotal game, obviously, at this point,” he said.

“Now a best-of-three, that’s gonna be a pivotal game. That’s what makes this series so exciting.”

Aside from his seasoned backcourt duo, the multi-titled coach is also pinning his hopes on, Japeth Aguilar, who had 21 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the field the last time out, Christian Standhardinger and Scottie Thompson to move closer to a finals stint.

Defending champion San Miguel Beer is already waiting in the best-of-seven championship.

The Beermen swept Rain or Shine in their semis series to advance and boost their chances of collecting all two crowns this season.

Meanwhile, Meralco would need to do a better job securing the boards after giving Ginebra 19 second chance points while getting outrebounded, 42-56.

Allein Maliksi, Chris Newsome and Chris Banchero must rally the Bolts to regain the series lead.

Cliff Hodge, who was thrown out of the game in the fourth quarter after getting whistled for a third technical foul of the game, Raymond Almazan and big man Brandon Bates must assert their presence more on the painted area to matchup with Ginebra’s bigs.