David vs. Goliath

 
Talk n Text and Barangay Ginebra begins their semifinal duel tomorrow April 26. Slated to be a best-of-five, this series can be likened to a David and Goliath kind of an encounter. The Texters is handled by grand slam coach Norman Black while Ginebra's Alfrancis Chua is looking for his first title as a coach in the PBA. Aside from that, Talk n Text has been a permanent fixture in the semifinals of every conference. This is their ninth straight appearance in the semifinals.

The two teams have split their two meetings this conference. Ginebra won their first encounter 107-100. that time, they still had Mark Caguioa who scattered 28 points and Talk n Text still had Donnell Harvey. In their second meeting, the Texters handily won 100-86. This time around there was no Caguioa and Harvey.

This is the first time since 2011 that the two teams are meeting in a series. With Nate Brumfield as Ginebra's reinforcement and Paul Harris as the import of Talk n Text, the latter won their Finals series 4-2. Since then the Kings have failed to move past the semifinals.

The Texters are heavily favored in this series. Their lineup is deep from top to bottom. They are loaded with shooters and have been together for several years already. Thus, their chemistry as a unit can no longer be questioned. On the other hand, Ginebra have been involved in several trades the last one involving Josh Urbiztondo for rookie Keith Jensen and a second round pick. Being in the Finals for several conferences already, championship experience is in the favor of Talk n Text.

Ginebra's last title was in 2008 and hence they would look for a way to solve any advantage that the Texters may have on them. With their "never-say-die" spirit in tow, I am sure that the Kings would not go down easily and make things hard for Talk n Text.