The Ginebra slayer came to play on Thursday night at the Big Dome.
James Yap came alive in the end-game to help the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters survive the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel, 109-100, to tie their 2018 Commissioner’s Cup best-of-five semifinal series at one game apiece.
The two-time PBA Most Valuable Player sparked the Elasto Painters’ 12-0 finishing kick from a 97-100 deficit with a tough lay-up off a drive. Yap contributed five points in that run, including the dagger triple with 1:06 left to play.
Yap finished with 18 points – spiked by five treys – along with three rebounds.
“I’m so proud of my players right now… They came out and played hard,” beamed Rain or Shine head coach Caloy Garcia. “In the end we won it because we hit the bigger shots. And we played great defense in the last three minutes.”
Reggie Johnson top-billed for the Elasto Painters with a near triple-double of 25 points, 20 rebounds, and eight assists. Gabe Norwood supplied 12 points and three boards, while Chris Tiu chimed in 11 points and seven dimes.
Raymond Almazan flirted with a double-double of 10 markers and eight caroms.
Justin Brownlee led the Barangay – and all scorers – with 29 points on 11-of-22 shooting along with 12 rebounds. The conference’s Best Import candidate also filled up the stat sheet with three assists, two steals, and two blocks.
Greg Slaughter was just two rebounds away from a double-double with 20 points and eight rebounds. LA Tenorio had 17 points, six rebounds, and four assists, while Scottie Thompson provided 14 markers and five boards.
Game Three is on Saturday, July 21, at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The Scores:
Rain or Shine (109) – Johnson 25, Yap 18, Norwood 12, Tiu 11, Almazan 10, Borboran 9, Daquioag 9, Nambatac 6, Ahanmisi 4, Ponferada 0, Washington 0
Ginebra (100) -Brownlee 29, Slaughter 20, Tenorio 17, Thompson 14, Chan 8, Devance 5, Caguioa 4, Ferrer 3, Mercado 0, Cruz 0
Quarterscores: 26-36, 57-57, 87-87, 109-100
