Rain or Shine had to withstand San Miguel’s fourth-quarter rally before coming away with the 116-112 decision to extend its unbeaten run to five in the PBA Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup, Wednesday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
The Elasto Painters saw their 25-point lead evaporate and become just a field goal, 99-97, with seven minutes to go. That was thanks to the Beermen’s massive 24-4 assault, but luckily, RoS had enough gas left to reach the finish line.
Jaylen Johnson, Felix Lemetti, and Adrian Nocum stopped the bleeding. They joined for a quick run to push their lead back to eight, 105-98, with 5:54 left, and Jhonard Clarito came in to help later to keep their foes at bay.
Defense proved key in the end, as they prevented the opposition from finding decent looks from the arcs. Nocum capped off the sequence by intercepting June Mar Fajardo’s pass just before time expired to seal the deal.
(C) PBA Images
“‘Di ka talaga pwede mag-relax kapag San Miguel kalaban mo,” exhaled head coach Yeng Guiao as they aced another test to remain atop the standings.
Johnson led the way with 24 points, five rebounds, and three assists. Meanwhile, Nocum finished with a conference-high 21 markers and five boards as well for Rain or Shine, which is now off to its best start in franchise history.
“Lahat ng mahirap dinaanan na namin,” Guiao said. “Lumaban kami nang walang import na kalaban si Bol Bol. Lumaban kami nang walang import for the whole game, kalaban Meralco. Nag-lead kami ng 25 points, tapos naubos.
“Pero, naipanalo pa rin,” he added. “Mabuti ‘yung team nagdadaan sa ganun kasi it really strengthens you, and tests your character.”
Clarito supplied 16 points, eight rebounds, and five assists. Lemetti produced 14 points, six rebounds, four assists, plus three steals, while Caelan Tiongson and Gian Mamuyac provided 11 and 10 markers, respectively.
Now that it has overcome SMB, Rain or Shine will shift its focus to Converge, which it faces this Friday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.
“Nakalusot eh. Tingnan natin kung hanggang saan ang suwerte,” said Guiao. “Sa amin ang importante lang, maka-six or seven wins.
“Ang kwenta namin, mga six or seven wins, pasok ka na sa quarters. So five wins kami. Baka isang panalo na lang, nasa quarters na kami. Pero para makasigurado, siguro kailangan ng mga pitong panalo,” he added.
(C) PBA Images
Marcio Lassiter, on the other hand, led all scorers with 27 points behind seven three-pointers to lead San Miguel in the rally that fell short.
The league’s all-time leader in threes powered the fightback behind his hot shooting from deep. He even had the chance to save themselves in the final possession, but he and Justin Patton had a bit of a mix-up in the corner.
It was a rough night for Patton himself, with 12 points and 17 rebounds. He struggled with foul trouble, having accumulated four in the first half.
CJ Perez made 18 points, four rebounds, and five assists. Fajardo had 17 points and 13 rebounds while Don Trollano chipped in 14 in the loss, which snapped their two-game win streak and dropped their card to 3-3.
Up next for Coach Leo Austria and his men would be the 2-3 Magnolia this Sunday, April 12, 5:15 PM at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
The Scores:
Rain or Shine 116 – Johnson 24, Nocum 21, Clarito 16, Lemetti 14, Tiongson 11, Mamuyac 10, Caracut 9, Santillan 5, Asistio 2, Roque 2, Malonzo 2, Villegas 0, Manaytay 0.
San Miguel 112 – Lassiter 27, Perez 18, Fajardo 17, Trollano 14, Patton 12, Tautuaa 9, Cruz 9, Tiongson 4, Brondial 2, Rosales 0, Cahilig 0.
Quarterscores: 26-27, 62-52, 95-73, 116-112.
