Barangay Ginebra coach Tim Cone doesn't expect an easy semifinal series in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) 50 Commissioner's Cup against Rain or Shine.

The Gin Kings and the Elasto Painters start their best-of-seven semifinal showdown on Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. at the Ynares Center I in Antipolo City.

Barangay Ginebra blew past Rain or Shine, 114-90, last May 3 in their elimination round game, and Cone played down the rout, saying that was not a reflection of how good Rain or Shine has been this conference.

Barangay Ginebra and Rain or Shine both have similar 9-3 win-loss records, with the Gin Kings only getting the higher seed of No. 2 due to their elimination round win.

“That was one of our better games in the conference. I think that was one of their worst games in the conference,” Cone said. 

Photo: PBA Images

“When someone is at the top of their game and the other is not on top of their game, oftentimes, it can turn into a blowout. And we were coming from the Meralco game just two days before which we got blown out. We were highly motivated just like Meralco was against us.”

When it comes to facing a Yeng Guiao-coached team, Cone expects a difficult game because of the energy they possess.

“I just know how hard it is to go up against Yeng Guiao and his teams. They play the game extremely hard. They play the game extremely fast. They compete all the time,” said Cone.