Jhonard Clarito did a little bit of everything to help Rain or Shine disarm the twice-to-beat NLEX, 92-89, and send their PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup quarterfinals to a sudden death, Wednesday at the Philsports Arena in Pasig.
The 6-foot-2 workhorse unleashed import-like numbers with 20 points and 21 rebounds, alongside an assist, a steal, and a block each. And he delivered hugely, especially in the fourth quarter, to help the Elasto Painters restore order.
RoS lost a 16-point lead and played catch-up but managed to retake the lead in the said frame, with Clarito himself giving them an 81-78 edge.
The Road Warriors did tie it up, but that proved to be their last hurrah, with the former MPBL standout scoring seven in a 9-4 assault for a 90-85 lead with 1:43 left — points he garnered mostly by cleaning up his teammates’ misses.
Clarito also hauled down crucial misses by the opposing team, collecting both of Rober Bolick’s missed layups inside the final 51.8 seconds before sealing the deal with a perfect trip to the foul line with only 10.2 seconds left in the game.
(C) PBA Images
“Mabuti na lang at nakabalik kami nung fourth quarter. Sheer hard work, sheer effort, just the desire to extend the series. Itong si Jhonard kita natin effort niya, buwis-buhay talaga,” lauded head coach Yeng Guiao.
Adrian Nocum also finished with 20 points with five rebounds to help lead Rain or Shine, as he was also crucial during the closing moments.
As Clarito had done prior, the springy combo guard leapt and tipped in the former’s missed bucket to make it a 90-85 count with 1:43 remaining.
Santi Santillan supplied 16 points and seven rebounds while Andrei Caracut chipped in 10 markers, spiked by a trio of shots from the first arc.
A team shooting for its fourth consecutive semifinal stint, the Elasto Painters will look to get the job done on Saturday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
“Now we look at it as we’re one win away from another semifinals. That’s the way we look at it. Isang panalo na lang, isang laro na lang, buwis buhay ulit tayo, semifinals ulit tayo. Yun ang perspective namin,” Guiao said.
(C) PBA Images
Xyrus Torres, on the other hand, had 20 points — spiked by a 4-of-7 clip from three-point distance— to lead NLEX. Javee Mocon made 16 and 11.
Bolick had 15 points and five rebounds with three assists as he did what he could to save themselves and to put their win-once bonus into good use.
He knocked down a big four-pointer to bring them to within a point, 90-89, with 1:31 to go, and things appeared to be going in their favor when Rain or Shine, particularly Clarito and Nocum, committed a turnover each.
However, Bolick failed to hit the potential go-ahead baskets when he botched both of his attempts, and they couldn’t even get the offensive board. Clarito was at the right place and the right time to collect those for his team instead.
The Scores:
Rain or Shine 92 – Clarito 20, Nocum 20, Santillan 16, Caracut 10, Mamuyac 7, Tiongson 6, Asistio 5, Porter 4, Norwood 4, Datu 0.
NLEX 89 – Torres 20, Mocon 16, Bolick 15, Ramirez 11, Semerad 9, Bahio 6, Alas 6, Nieto 2, Fajardo 2, Policarpio 2.
Quarterscores: 28-15, 47-37, 69-73, 92-89.
