Rain or Shine needed some aid from Lady Luck to survive Converge, 112-111, to finish its PBA Season 48 Commissioner’s Cup elimination round campaign with six straight wins, Sunday at the Philsports Arena in Pasig.
Gabe Norwood turned the ball over when rookie JL Delos Santos intercepted his sideline inbound pass with 4.2 seconds left to play, but the FiberXers failed to convert in time as King Caralipio got checked in the left corner.
“Mabuti rin yung game namin ngayon, one point. Parang ganito rin yung mae-experience mo sa playoffs. You need to know how to win games in the endgame, you need to know how to close out games,” said coach Yeng Guiao.
Tree Treadwell led the Elasto Painters with 21 points, 17 rebounds, and eight assists in the victory that enabled the crew to lock the no. 7 seed.
The American reinforcement was the one who gave the crew the 111-108 lead with 35.6 seconds left to play, before veteran big man Beau Belga stretched their cushion to four points following a split from the foul line.
Still, their foes managed to cut the gap to a solitary point once again behind a triple by Caralipio, but they just couldn’t overtake Rain or Shine as attempts Jamil Wilson and Bryan Santos failed to meet the bottom of the net.
Belga contributed significantly as well with 19 points on 70-percent shooting from the field, alongside four rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
Keith Datu chipped in 10 markers, spiked by a pair of treys, and five rebounds in the victory that saw all 16 players get fielded by Guiao.
“Kanina ginusto ko talaga magamit lahat, so ginamit ko lahat ng team ko para lahat sila may feel ng game pagdating ng quarterfinals,” Guiao said.
Now they wait for either Phoenix Super LPG or San Miguel as their foes in the quarterfinals. One of the two could secure the second seed.
Wilson, meanwhile, led Converge with a near triple-double as he registered 26 points, 13 rebounds, and nine assists in the rally that fell short.
Justin Arana had 19 points. Santos made 18 points while Caralipio supplied 16 as the rooks churned out conference-high outings to provide a silver lining for the FiberXers, which finished the conference with a 1-10 card.
The Scores:
Rain or Shine 112 – Treadwell 21, Belga 19, Datu 10, Yap 9, Demusis 8, Nocum 8, Nambatac 6, Norwood 6, Belo 5, Borboran 5, Santillan 5, Clarito 5, Mamuyac 4, Ildefonso 1, Caracut 0, Asistio 0.
Converge 111 – Wilson 26, Arana 19, Santos 18, Caralipio 16, Nieto 7, Fornilos 6, Delos Santos 6, Winston 4, Stockton 3, Melecio 3, Maagdenberg 2, Vigan-Fleming 1.
Quarterscores: 28-19, 55-48, 82-78, 112-111
